The Trial Of Rock Hudson

There had never been a trial like it. It took place in the Superior Court of Los Angeles, beginning in December 1988, and it made Rock Hudson?s former lover, Marc Christian, an instant multi-millionaire. Hudson almost certainly had AIDS throughout their three-year relationship, but when the dreaded news was finally confirmed he deliberately withheld it from Christian. When Hudson died, Christian sued. The trial went ahead and the upshot was that Christian was initially awarded almost $23 million in damages. The Trial of Rock Hudson chronicles every day of that landmark trial and studies its impact on Hollywood, the homosexual community and AIDS suffereres themselves. It also supplies a fascinating insight into the legal system in the USA.

Tall, dark and handsome, with a manufactured name and a scrupulously designed professional image, Rock Hudson represented the Hollywood ideal of American masculinity during the 1950s and 60s; an ideal that was to be questioned and ultimately undermined during the years to follow by lurid accounts of his private life and his death from AIDS related illness. This illuminating analysis of Hudson's career reassesses the perceived disparity between his public persona and his 'true' nature. Exploring his unique qualities as a performer and exposing the role of his agent, producers and directors in the construction of his image, John Mercer unpicks Hudson's stardom to reveal a more complex star identity than has hitherto been understood. Foregrounding the ways in which Hudson's career provides insights into the nature of American popular culture and attitudes towards gender and sexuality, Mercer ultimately depicts Hudson as a star who embodied a period of transition between the old Hollywood and the new.

This book is about the first "fear of AIDS" case tried in America. It tells the untold story of the trial that the general public heard nothing about. By telling the true story from the perspective of the lawyer who actually represented the Estate of Rock Hudson it is hoped the reader, acting as the 13th juror, will see the gross injustice done to the late actor by Christian and Rock's alleged friend, Mark Miller, as well as the court, the jury, and the press, all of which were blinded from the truth by this newly discovered disease called AIDS. Marc Christian claimed he was given a death sentence because Rock didn't tell him of his AIDS diagnosis and continued to have high risk sex with him. 25 years later Christian died not from HIV or AIDS. He was never HIV positive. How could this be if he was telling the truth that he continued having anal sex with Hudson 3 to 5 times a week for 8 months after Rock was first told he had full blown AIDS? Christian was either superhuman and they should clone his blood as a cure for AIDS, or he simply didn't tell the truth at trial, where Rock Hudson could not defend himself because Christian waited until Rock died, and found out he wasn't in his Will, before bringing his lawsuit.

The inspiration for the HBO® Original Documentary, Rock Hudson: All that Heaven Allowed, airing June 28! The definitive biography of the deeply complex and widely misunderstood matinee idol of Hollywood’s Golden Age. “Mark Griffin paints a vivid portrait of a man who lived a double life in order to maintain his status as a movie star. Griffin’s sources are candid but credible, which makes the book a real page-turner. I came away admiring Hudson all the more, and feeling sad for the secret existence that Hollywood demanded of its leading men in the 1950s and 60s.” — Leonard Maltin, author of Hooked on Hollywood: Discoveries from a Lifetime of Film Fandom Devastatingly handsome, broad-shouldered and clean-cut, Rock Hudson was the ultimate movie star. The embodiment of romantic masculinity in American film throughout the ‘50s and ‘60s, he reigned supreme as the king of Hollywood. As an Oscar-nominated leading man, Hudson won acclaim for his performances in glossy melodramas (Magnificent Obsession), western epics (Giant) and blockbuster bedroom farces (Pillow Talk). In the ‘70s and ‘80s, Hudson successfully transitioned to television; his long-running series McMillan & Wife and a recurring role on Dynasty introduced him to a whole new generation of fans. The icon worshipped by moviegoers and beloved by his colleagues appeared to have it all. Yet beneath the suave and commanding star persona, there was an insecure, deeply conflicted, and all too vulnerable human being. Growing up poor in Winnetka, Illinois, Hudson was abandoned by his biological father, abused by an alcoholic stepfather, and controlled by his domineering mother. Despite seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Hudson was determined to become an actor at all costs. After signing with the powerful but predatory agent Henry Willson, the young hopeful was transformed from a clumsy, tongue-tied truck driver into Universal Studio’s resident Adonis. In a more conservative era, Hudson’s wholesome, straight arrow screen image was at odds with his closeted homosexuality. As a result of his gay relationships and clandestine affairs, Hudson was continually threatened with public exposure, not only by scandal sheets like Confidential but by a number of his own partners. For years, Hudson dodged questions concerning his private life, but in 1985 the public learned that the actor was battling AIDS. The disclosure that such a revered public figure had contracted the illness focused worldwide attention on the epidemic. Drawing on more than 100 interviews with co-stars, family members and former companions, All That Heaven Allows delivers a complete and nuanced portrait of one of the most fascinating stars in cinema history. Griffin provides new details concerning Hudson’s troubled relationships with wife Phyllis Gates and boyfriend Marc Christian. And here, for the first time, is an in-depth exploration of Hudson’s classic films, including Written on the Wind, A Farewell to Arms, and the cult favorite Seconds. With unprecedented access to private journals, personal correspondence, and production files, Griffin pays homage to the idol whose life and death had a lasting impact on American culture.

First published in 2004. With subjects drawm from politics, the arts and popular culture, Who's Who in Contemporray Gay & Lesbian History, includes 500 entries from a large team of expert international contributors. The geographical scope takes in the whole of the Western world. Includes fascinating information about little-known figures as well as cult icons from World War II to the present day.

This issue examines Latin American labour, and includes coverage of topics such as: the organization amongst San Marcos coffee workers during Guatemala's National Revolution 1944-1954; the myth of the history of Chile - the Araucanians; and the representation of class and populism in Sao Paolo.

The book is a collection of ten essays on legal responses to HIV/AIDS, written by scholars from five continents (Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe & America). Each essay deals with HIV/AIDS-related problems in the author's country. An effort was made to select highly-diversified countries belonging to different families of law, the countries varying in their political, ethnic, & religious backgrounds. The contributors were encouraged to explore the links between HIV/AIDS-related problems & other social issues. They were also encouraged to reflect upon the limits & effectiveness of legal measures in reducing the growth of the epidemic. Finally, the goal of the project was to find whether it is possible to achieve a proper balance between the need to protect societies from the scourge of AIDS & the need to protect the rights of those afflicted by the disease.

The true story of Rock Hudson's life as told by his closest friend and lover of twenty years, this book is filled with wonderful reminiscences--some funny, some sad, all revealing--about the great stars and directors Rock Hudson worked with in his many films. 16 pages of photographs.