On 3/19/2012, I went to a screening of ‘Ten More Good Years’. It was held at the Seattle City Hall. The event was organized by Aaron McCartney, and sponsored by SEqual and the City of Seattle LGBTQ Employee Association. After the screening, there was a panel discussion. The panelists were Michael Jacoby, (Director of ‘Ten More Good Years’); Mac McGregor (Seattle LGBTQ Commissioner); Louise Chernin (GSBA President); Brad Hoover (Seattle DSHS Rep.); and George Bakan (Editor of The Seattle Gay News).
As I watched the documentary, I quickly realized that is was filmed pre-Obama because many of the issues discussed does not apply today. Things are definitely different for the LGBTQ community of today and continue to change rather rapidly. First it was the end to the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ military policy, then the legalization of gay marriage in many states with more to come, and just recently President Barack Obama, Jesse Jackson, and the NAACP has all officially stated their support of gay marriage.
Yes, things have definitely changed. However, one thing that has not changed is the fact that one day we will all become part of the LGBTQ Elders community. And the question is, are you ready? For many of my 30-something peers, I will have to say the answer is no. They have no idea where they are going to be ten years from now, let alone one year from now. Growing old and retiring is not as easy a transition as it is for our heterosexual counterparts. Many, but not all of the issues discussed in ‘Ten More Good Years’ still apply today. There are no survivorship benefits for gays. The majority of us will never have children who would eventually take care of us in our old age. There are very few exclusively gay or gay-friendly nursing homes or retirement communities in the U.S., forcing our gay elders to co-habitate with the same bigoted individuals they fought against in the early days for our gay rights. If you’ve been a stay-at-home partner or one of the ‘self-employed’ (e.g. Entertainers; Dr. Feel Goods; Hustlers) for most of your life, forget about Social Security because you have nothing coming. And if your not rich or at least have some financial stability when you get old, forget about taking in a younger lover to take care of you; it’s just not going to happen.
Luckily, things aren’t as bleak for the LGBTQ Elders as one may imagine. From the panel discussion that followed the screening of ‘Ten More Good Years’, I learned that there are many changes happening at the federal level that addresses LGBTQ Elder issues. This past year, SAGE (Services and Advocacy for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, & Transgender Elders) received a substantial grant from the Obama administration. Also, President Barack Obama just recently appointed a lesbian as chair of the 2015 White House Conference on Aging. The future of our LGBTQ Elders has a much brighter outlook than it did just five years ago. However, there is still much more work to do.
I think George Bakan made the most important point during the panel discussion. He said, “Instead of thinking on the macro level, we need to focus more on the micro level.” Meaning, we should be focusing on what we can do for our local LGBTQ Elders in the Greater Seattle area. To help on the national level, all you have to do is vote. To help locally, you need to get involved and volunteer. George also brought up the issue of ageism in the gay community, especially for gay men. It was stated that there needs to be more cross-generational projects and events, which I whole-heartedly agree with. There is so much knowledge and memory in the minds of our elders that will be lost forever if we do not stop segregating ourselves between the young and not so young. I propose we have a “Take an Elder Out for a Cocktail” night once a month, at least it’s a start.
After the screening and the panel discussion, I had an opportunity speak one-on-one with Michael Jacoby over cocktails at Seattle’s Lobby Bar on Capitol Hill. I kept my questions regarding ‘Ten More Good Years’ to a minimum, considering the documentary was released in 2008. I can only imagine how many times he has watched it himself, and how many times he has been asked the same questions regarding it. So I asked him only one question regarding the documentary, “what motivated you to make this documentary?” He answered simply with the reply, “Melvin Dwork”.
“Who’s Melvin Dwork?” I asked. Before I had finished my first Cosmo, I had learned that Melvin Dwork is a dear friend of his, who has experienced first hand the issues facing our LGBTQ Elders. He is also the topic of his latest project, ‘The Undesirable’.
The synopsis for ‘The Undesirable’ reads as follows:
‘The Undesirable’ is a feature documentary focusing on the life of WWII veteran Melvin Dwork. In 1944 Dwork was 'undesirably discharged' from the U.S. Navy for being homosexual. Both he and his first love, Dale, were thrown into the Brig for over a month; isolated, interrogated and psychoanalyzed. Due to these humiliating circumstances the two young men were not able to sustain their relationship. They parted ways upon their release from the military brig. They would not meet again for another 65 years. It was during their time apart that Dwork found solace within the Gay and Lesbian community. Dwork began to put his life back together and was becoming a confident young man, so confident that he even found the courage to travel to D.C. on several occasions in an effort to have his military status repealed. Sadly, he was denied each time. In the mean time Dwork’s first love Dale found himself retreating deep into the closet. Dale eventually married and became a family man. In their early 80’s Melvin and Dale would meet again to try and heal the emotional wounds brought on by their discharge from the Navy. The weekend they spent together was both tender and tenuous, but most of all it inspired Melvin to take up his fight with the U.S. Navy once again; this time with the help of The Service Member’s Legal Defense Network. In April, 2011 Dwork, at age 89, was notified by the Pentagon that his military status would be upgraded to “honorable,” because "it was the right thing to do," making Melvin the first known WWII Veteran to have such a military status repealed in U.S. history. “The Undesirable” is a true story about love, hope and having the courage and perseverance to stand up for what is right.
After listening to Michael elaborate a bit on ‘The Undesirable’, all I could think was ‘not another documentary’. Considering he already has five documentaries to his name (i.e. Freedomless; Ten More Good Years; The Written Word; The Advocate On Air; It’s About Time), I asked if he could possibly change the format of the film a bit to make it more dramatic, more like a ‘love story.’ He smiled and laughed at the question. He explained that was his intent from the very beginning. Upon hearing this, I immediately became re-interested. I told him, “tell me more.” After listening to his plans for the film, I instantly became a fan of Michael Jacoby for life. I don’t want to spoil the ending, but I will tell you that ‘The Undesirable’ is not your typical love story. The film is presently in production, and LookOut Films Studio is seeking donations to complete the project. If you would like to help, you can donate by clicking on the following link:
Please help ‘The Undesirable’!
Since ‘The Undesirable’ is pretty much a ‘done deal’ and is only awaiting financing to be completed, I asked Michael what is asked of all creators of art, ‘what’s next?’ Again, he was delighted to hear the question asked. He said he gets so tired of discussing past projects over, and over again. Projects that he is certain he could have made better, now that he is a more seasoned director. I assured him that his previous projects were good enough, and that he shouldn’t fret about them. I asked him again, ‘what’s next?’ He stated that mainstream queer cinema was his real passion. Last year, he produced the short film ‘With This Ring’. The short film is a thriller that shows the ugly side of gay marriage. Again, I don’t want to spoil it for you, but trust me, it’s definitely an unexpected ending. You’ll have to watch the film to find out.
“That was last year. What do you have coming out next year?” I asked. He said he doesn’t have anything coming out next year. However, he is working on two screenplays - one is a thriller, the other a drama. The thriller is about how online cruising has become the norm in gay mens’ lives and how easily we share information about ourselves online, which leads to a stalker situation. The drama will be a ‘Boys Don’t Cry’ type of movie, with a gay boy as the primary character instead of a lesbian.
“Interesting. Interesting. I like what I hear.” I said. “But now, I want to know about the man behind the camera.” From my research, I learned Michael Jacoby was born and raised in the L.A. area, but has lived in New York for the past 15-years. I asked, what possessed him to make such a move. His answer was, “For inspiration.” I didn’t get it. I asked him to elaborate. To him, L.A. is a one-industry town with very little diversity. Whereas, N.Y. offers a ton of diversity that you can experience every day just by taking the elevator up to your apartment. I could see his point.
“What brings you joy?” was my next question. Weekend vacations, his partner, and his dachshund/chihuahua mix little dog named ‘Boxer’, he quickly replied. To end our interview, I asked Michael to give me something that he has never said to another reporter, and that no one really knows. He said, “I’ll do anything to pay the bills.” My first thought was, ‘Is this man a hooker?’ I asked Michael what he meant by ‘anything’. He clarified by saying, ‘he shoots weddings, pornos, commercials, anything that pays the bill.’ No judgment here. I respect all working men.
For anyone wishing to help Michael Jacoby get ‘The Undesirable’ produced, you can donate at theundesirable.com.
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