Bisexual?Bonnie and Clyde Q&A-- Was Clyde's sexuality Ambiguous?13 Infamous Facts About Bonnie and Barrow
Not a single one of his peers thought he was gay.He was "all man" according to a girl he dated before Bonnie.The people who ran with B&C wouldn't have allowed a homosexual to be the gang leader, and they never even mentioned that he was gay.I believe that Marie once said something to the effect of, "If he was gay, why did he spend all his time with that girl?"B&C liked to pose, just as other kids do, for the photo of Clyde holding hands with Ray Hamilton.During WWII, my dad and his fellow soldiers were goofing off and taking turns wearing an old dress and showing off their hairy legs and posing in supposedly "sexy" poses, while the other soldiers pretended to look at them.Comrade goofing off and acting up for the camera is not gay.If he grew up in a large family, he might never have slept alone, as there was very little privacy in those days, and even a guest might be tucked into bed with someone else.He was a kid.There would have been a stigma against spending a lot of time with a homosexual man, if there were any rumors about him.I don't think he would have been allowed to fill this role if he'd been gay, he was definitely the boss, no matter who was riding along.One of the best lines I've read on the subject.The only known homosexual activity by Clyde was being raped in prison, and he hated it so much that he killed the guy.Some people think that Clyde became gay as a result of these experiences.That's not what makes people gay.I think it made him mean-mad and led to his rage against the authorities.
I had someone who had seen the movie, but who didn't know much about B&C, tell me that after he saw it, he found some pictures of Clyde and that he seems to "stand a little funny."I think that his "standing funny" fit what he had seen in the movie.I think that he is a little funny because he was missing two toes.It's possible that some people who saw pictures of Clyde "standing funny" took it the same way.I think the depiction of "Guy Darrow" in this film carried over into the Penn movie.I've heard that they wanted to have sex in the movie in order for Bonnie to be "man- crazy".Apparently the law and other people assumed that Bonnie was a raging nymphomaniac because she traveled with this gang of men, and that there had to be other men around all the time to satisfy her.If a person's mind runs that way, it would be logical for them to conclude that there is something wrong with him.The most logical assumption is that there were always men riding with B&C because it was the men who committed the crimes, while Bonnie for the most part kept watch, perhaps drove getaway cars, and took a potshot at someone a time or two.It's easy to understand why people grasp at straws as to why they traveled with men.I don't understand, but some people's minds work that way, and J. Edgar Hoover had a low opinion of Bonnie.It was easy for people to see Bonnie as a nympho who was on the run with the man she loved rather than as the person she was.When they saw the photos of Bonnie playing tough with the cigar and guns, I think they were willing to believe anything bad about her morals and sexuality.I haven't found any evidence that he was gay or impotent.
It's possible that people will assume that he was lacking in manhood because of his height and weight, even though I've seen a few different heights mentioned for him.I am struck by the fact that I would have towered over Bonnie, as I'm 5'8" tall, and that she would not have had much over me either in size or weight.Some people make assumptions about small men being gay.
There was an article about male expressions of affection in the early 1900's.I was interested in this because of the Ray Hamilton photo.The practices were discontinued by the time the 1930's rolled around, so I'll try to locate this article again.I agree with the idea that being a homosexual would make a criminal gang leader incapable of commanding respect.I don't think there is a true interest in B&C History among those who are searching for a gay icon.?
There is a lot of speculation concerning all of this.B&C references from John Toland's The Dillinger Days were an inspiration for the movie.Bonnie is depicted as a nymphomaniac in Toland's book.John Toland had a lot to do with the sexual views concerning Bonnie & Clyde.Where did Toland get his information?Which is the question for me.I feel B&C History can thank Jeff for spreading the rumor about Bonnie being a prostitution business.To eliminate the chance of a spirited face to face exchange between apparently myself, one other Historian and Mr. Guinn, some had worked in advance.
I've read statements by people who worked on the Bonnie and Clyde movie who are convinced that the character was bisexual, and they toned that down for the movie, but the source of their supposed knowledge is not given.I don't know if "Dillinger Days" is available anywhere, but I would be interested in reading it and seeing if there is anything in the footnotes that would justify these rumors.It seems to me that the police would have used this information to destroy him if someone had said something about his sexuality.If the rumors of sexual deviation in the Barrow Gang were true, it would have been a perfect time for them to deny them publicly.Bonnie wanted Boyd to let people know that she didn't smoke cigars, instead of telling them she was a traveling orgy.I'm going to see if I can locate the Toland book to find out where he got his information.
There are two references to John Toland and The Dillinger Days in the book.The paperback version of Fugitives has an introduction.The yellow Signet paperback is the title of this book.Nelson Algren addresses Toland's handling of B&C in his introduction to The Complete Public Enemy Almanac.
I worked as aCID agent in 1973.I interviewed W.D. in December of 73.Jones is at a house.There is a missing person.Jones was very honest.He was living with a man who was in a relationship with Jones.Jones likes to drink and use drugs.He was selling qualudes.I told him that I saw the car with bullet holes at the tent show and that Bonnie was probably a nymphomaniac.
I would like to know if there is any evidence you can use to support your beliefs regarding Bonnie & Clyde's rumored sexuality.?Clyde's being abused in prison, has never been linked to changing his sexual preference-- as evidenced by the women he was involved with, one of which he almost married.Not only was it not proven to have been written by Bonnie, but it was also linked to Marie in the Kaufman jail collection Poems from Life's Other Side.Maybe we could be on to something if someone could tell me which came first, the Bonnie rumors or the "Amputated" Bible.Help reveal where the rumors came from.
I asked Ralph Fults if clyde was gay and he said no.
The "man crazy" Bonnie rumor was started because she was a woman travelling with a group of men.If you live in a small town and hang out with a group of males, people assume you must be sleeping with all of them.My mom was born in the 41 and my sister was 36 and I heard them talk a lot about this girl or that girl, even calling a man on the phone was considered shameful back in those days.I think people assumed that if Bonnie was crazy, or he wouldn't have put up with it, he must have been gay.