George Maharis: “Man of Courage”

Over at the excellent Gay Species blogsite, D. Stephen Heersink continues his “Profile of Courage” series with a tribute to American actor George Maharis.

Heersink’s tribute is a very insightful examination of the important role Maharis played in “breaking through much of [Hollywood’s] homophobic mold.”

Heersink’s very honest sharing of his own struggles as a teenager to overcome “the stereotype of effeminate, emasculated, pathetic” gay men is also very moving and instructive. He notes, for instance, that: “It was not my sexuality and preference, but [this] ‘stereotype’ that was the single greatest barrier.” For as Heersink reminds us, this particular stereotype embodies “the false presumption” that “gay equals effeminate, dysfunctional, and unhappy.”

George Maharis, however, wasn’t afraid to “trounce [such] monolithic stereotype caricatures.” He was, says Heersink, “a pioneer. A legend. A hunk. A man of courage. A man of his convictions. A man [to whom] many of us are proud to pay tribute [for] his . . . courage to buck the powers that be, to give voice to authenticity, to prefer honesty rather than duplicity, and accept no double-standards.” Maharis, continues Heersink, “gave many of us who came of age at the time and thereafter the courage to stand proudly on a pioneer’s shoulders, to be an honest, out, virile, openly gay man, to reject all stereotypes, especially the dreadful monolithic anti-gay caricatures and stereotypes, to reject the reviling mockery of emasculated weak men portrayed on the silver screen, and to accept ourselves for who we are, regardless of who disapproves, regardless of who approves, despite the costs.”

Above: George Maharis, at left, as Buz Murdock and Martin Milner as
Tod Stiles in the 1960 premiere episode of Route 66.

Following is an excerpt from Heersink’s tribute to George Maharis. Enjoy!

____________________

Concealment has been part-and-parcel of Hollywood homophobia for generations.

Which affords me the opportunity to again acknowledge the two most important “public figures” instrumental in breaking-through much of that homophobic mold: talk-show host Phil Donahue and actor George Maharis. The entire gay community has largely ignored their enormous influence, salutary contributions, their impetus to Gay Liberation, and [the] courage [they showed] that . . . led to events like Stonewall, White Night Riots . . . etc.

When responding to my own sexual interests, in my early teens, it was not my sexuality and preference, but the “stereotype” that was the single greatest barrier: the stereotype of effeminate, emasculated, pathetic man – the Liberaces, Paul Lyndes, Truman Capotes – that was the barrier. It was the hyper-emasculated stereotypes portrayed by the likes of Rex Harrison and Richard Burton in their homophobic caricature Staircase (1969) followed by the despairing travesty of Boys in the Band (1970), which initially served to inhibit many gay men from “coming-out.” The false presumption was: gay equals effeminate, dysfunctional, and unhappy.

It was not that the effeminate men existed, it was the presumption that all gay men are necessarily effeminate, dysfunctional, and miserable, presenting an intense self-image barrier to many gay men in the nascent days around Gay Liberation. Perhaps, the effeminate characteristic is so stereotypical because it is impossible to conceal, or perhaps gender-bending made them caricatures for straight audiences to mock in smug depreciation. But for many, it was these very stereotypes that created barriers for gays to “come-out.” Not that the stereotype was itself a problem, but the presumption that all gays were perceived in that light, creating a self-image that many gay men did not perceive as their own. . . . Maharis [with his] honest openness [was one of the first] to trounce those monolithic stereotype caricatures boldly.

First and foremost, Maharis may be a tad bit older, but he’s still damn sexy. Secondly, he is unquestionably manly. Third, his “spread” in Playgirl showed all his virile gorgeous Greek manhood to anyone who desired to look (and many of us looked).

Above and below: George Maharis at age 45
in the July 1973 issue of Playgirl.

Fourth, his open and honest sexuality, sensitivity, and artistic temperament were unlike the stereotypes hoisted on the masses by the Hollywood “arbiters of homophobia.” Fifth, his “being busted” for “doing” a L.A. undercover cop in the Sixties was a badge of honor he wore proudly (not the “bust,” per se, but the reason for it). Sixth, he chose honesty and openness to “closets” and “concealment,” encouraging others to follow suit.

Watching Maharis next to Rock Hudson on McMillan & Wife (1974) brought-out the difference in character not confined to acting. Most Southern California gay-guys knew both were gay, Maharis openly. Every L.A. queen knew Hudson was an insatiable “bottom.” And every L.A. queen speculated on every other “actor” as if it really mattered in the final analysis. But few had the courage of his convictions to be “open, out, and proudly a gay man.” Not Hunter. Not Perkins. Not Hudson. Not Chamberlain. But, George Maharis was one actor who had that courage in spades. That honesty. And no one questioned his manhood, manliness, or virility, much less his honestly handsome good looks.

– D. Stephen Heersink

NOTE: Since the December 29, 2009 death of Stephen Heersink,
his blog, The Gay Species, has been off-line.

Above: George Maharis with Judy Garland in 1963.
As well as being a respected actor, Maharis is
also an accomplished singer.

Above: George Maharis in 2006.

UPDATE:
George Maharis, Star of Route 66, Dies at 94
– Mike Barnes and Duane Byrge
The Hollywood Reporter
May 27, 2023


See also the previous Wild Reed posts:
• Dirk Bogarde (Part I)
• Dirk Bogarde (Part II)
• Dirk Bogarde (Part III)
• The New Superman: Not Necessarily Gay, But Definitely Queer
• Alexander’s Great Love
• A Simple Yet Radical Act