CONVERSATIONS WITH GAY ELDERS is a series of 6 in-depth interviews and conversational documentaries focused on gay men whose journeys of self-discovery precede the era of Stonewall and Gay Liberation. The conversations explore how these men navigated being “different” long before there was any social or political context for a positive LGBT self-image. CONVERSATIONS WITH GAY ELDERS was a cross-generational collaboration in which producer/ director David Weissman (then in his early 60s) worked in partnership with gay men in their 20s and 30s as editors to profile gay men in their 70s and 80s.
Read more about the current status and history of this project.
Coming soon: Read more about the process of making this series, and how the editors and subjects were selected.
Kerby Lauderdale was in a long heterosexual marriage after first exploring his homosexuality in the 1950s. After having been a pastor, and owning a wholesale nursery, Kerby fully came out in the 1980s. Interviewed at age 77, Kerby is a resident of Portland Oregon. Edited by (then) 32 year old Michiel Thomas.
Born in San Francisco’s Chinatown in 1929, Paul Chin grew up speaking mostly Chinese in his early years. Paul began very actively exploring gay life in his early teens and an early encounter in a cruising spot was to change his life. Now 90, Paul still lives in the Brisbane home he and his partner Chuck moved into in the mid-1950s. Edited by (then) 32 year old Michiel Thomas.
Born in Brooklyn in 1929, Jack Lasner has been a mountain climber, schoolteacher, avid naturist and world traveler. Interviewed at age 86, Jack still lives in San Francisco at age 91, and remains quite frisky! Edited by (then) 31 year-old Benjamin Zweig.
Born and raised in Darby Pennsylvania, Daniel Maloney moved to New York in the early 1960s and in the 1970s was a principal dancer with the Martha Graham Dance Company. Interviewed at age 77, Daniel is still a working physical therapist in New York. Edited by (then) 25 year old Jake Stein.
Born in Western Pennsylvania, Eugene “Gene” Fedorko escaped to New York City in the early 1960s in search of his “tribe”. Interviewed at age 72, Gene describes himself as “a medical professional, caregiver, art collector, curator, activist, sexual outlaw, and cultural flâneur.” Gene was the youngest of the “elders” in this series, and at 77 still lives in New York City. Edited by (then) 37 year old Aron Kantor.
Longtime San Francisco resident, Robert Dockendorff grew up in rural Iowa. He spent three years on active duty in the Navy, including time in Viet Nam, and 22 years in the Naval Reserves. After being released from active duty in the late 60s, Robert built a life in San Francisco working in the maritime industry for 35 years and became very active in The City’s political and philanthropic life. Edited by (then) 25 year old Alex Bohs.