The Celluloid Closet 30th Anniversary

Based on Vito Russo's seminal 1981 bestseller, this award-winning documentary from directors Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman, celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, traces the history of LGBTQ+ representation in the first century of Hollywood; from early coded portrayals and damaging stereotypes to more open and nuanced depictions with the advent of New Queer Cinema in the 1990s. Joined by Lily Tomlin as the narrator, a host of renowned actors and queer historians—Tom Hanks, Whoopi Goldberg, Harvey Fierstein, Susan Sarandon, Tony Curtis, Susie Bright, Gore Vidal, Jan Oxenberg, Quentin Crisp, Arthur Laurents, among them, reflect on cinema's role in shaping—and distorting—queer visibility. Sponsored by The Legacy Project.