In this Episode, Kelly is joined by writer Gabriel Rotello! He is the author of two books: Sexual Ecology: AIDS and the Destiny of Gay Men and The CBGB Conspiracy. He became the first openly gay op-ed columnist for a major American newspaper and is the founder of Out Week Magazine. He has also written, directed, and produced dozens of TV documentaries for major networks like HBO, Netflix, and the History Channel.
Gabriel talks about growing up in Danbury, Connecticut, and traveling into the city with his older brother when he was 13! Even at that age, he knew he wanted to move to New York when he grew up. Kelly asks him what life was like in New York in the 1970s. Gabriel talks about how Manhattan was a playground for young adults in their early 20s. He tells us how cheap his rent was, describes the decay of the Bowery in great detail, and talks about how wonderful it was to play music at CBGB.
Kelly asks Gabriel about CBGB. Gabriel tells us that in the beginning, no one wanted to go there. He describes the "Bowery Bums", the mismanagement of the venue, and its terrible location. He then talks about how it became one of the most famous punk venues in the world.
Gabriel talks a bit about his book: The CBGB Conspiracy. He tells Kelly that he actually did not want to write a book about his time in the 70s at first. With the aids epidemic looming over it, he thought it too depressing. But when inspiration struck, while walking along the street one day, he came up with the idea of creating a murder mystery, with CBGB as the background and weaving in famous people of the era, along with his personal experiences.
Kelly asks Gabriel a bit about the process of writing, and Gabriel talks about how he was inspired by a past guest of our show, Jonathan Mahler! He talks about reading Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx Is Burning... and being transported back into that time in his life.
Kelly then asks Gabriel what gay life was like back in the day. Gabriel describes the streets of the West Village being filled with shirtless gay men dancing and having the best time on a random Tuesday night. He talks about how there was a feud between the East Village gay community and the West Village gay community. He talks about their differences, what it was like to have one foot in both, and he reflects on how his perception has changed since then.
Gabriel then talks a bit about his partner Hap, who passed during the Aids Epidemic. Gabriel had met Hap when he was studying abroad and just happened to run into each other when he moved to New York. Gabriel talked about how Hap showed him the ropes as a newly out man. He talks about how they dated until Hap's passing. Kelly talks about marching on Washington in support of the movement. Gabriel talks about how it inspired him to start Out Week Magazine, and how he invited outing!
But above all else; Gabriel Rotello is a New Yorker!
Kelly Kopp's Social Media:
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Buy Gabriel's Book!
Gabriel's Social Media:
@GabeRotello
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Chapters - (00:00:00) - New Yorkers: Gabriel Rotello on the Podcast
- (00:01:57) - Phil Collins on Coming Out in NYC
- (00:06:02) - Living in the East Village in the 60s
- (00:09:51) - Punishment for Bowery Bums
- (00:14:57) - The Talking Heads on Hilly Hill's Death
- (00:19:50) - Madonna's First Public Gig
- (00:20:32) - CBGB's Conspiracy is a Novel
- (00:26:00) - The Making of A Time to Win
- (00:26:33) - In the Elevator With Steven Spielberg
- (00:31:42) - Inside The Bowery
- (00:32:24) - How To Write a Novel
- (00:33:03) - In the Elevator With Jonathan Harris
- (00:37:07) - How a dime changed the phone
- (00:37:24) - Adam Levine on the Gay Scene in New York
- (00:41:18) - Punk and Disco in the East Village
- (00:44:13) - In the Elevator With Out Week
- (00:47:12) - Gabriel on ACT UP and the Gay Community
- (00:50:54) - What It Means to Be a New Yorker
- (00:52:47) - How To Find Gabriel Ortello On Social Media
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