The Man from C.A.M.P

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Cover of 1966 paperback "The Man from C.A.M.P.", by Don Holliday.
Cover of 1966 paperback "The Man from C.A.M.P.", by Don Holliday.

The Man from C.A.M.P. is a series of nine gay pulp fiction novels published under the pseudonym of Don Holliday. The original nine were written by Victor J. Banis between 1965 and 1969; a tenth by an uncertain author appeared in 1973.[1] The series first emerged during a period when gay paperback titles began spoofing popular genre fiction, including detective stories and spy thrillers. As such, they are part of the great gay paperback explosion that "catered to most every taste in men's genre fiction," including detective stories and spy thrillers.[2] According to Banis, the series was inspired by the characters Batmane and Robin, by the James Bond series and the television show The Man from U.N.C.L.E.[3]

The series is significant because it offers the first portrayal of a gay secret agent in fiction, Jackie Holmes.[4]

Contents

[edit] Series Introduction

Victor J. Banis, author of The Man from C.A.M.P.
Victor J. Banis, author of The Man from C.A.M.P.

C.A.M.P., whose name references the camp aesthetic, is described as "an underground organization dedicated to the protection and advancement of homosexuals."[5] C.A.M.P. works in coordination with law enforcement agencies around the globe, including INTERPOL. The meaning of the acronym C.A.M.P. is never given, but the series' protagonist, Jackie Holmes, a gay, seductive and capable international secret agent, allows that "the C might stand for sucker."[6] The general formula for each book involves Jackie being paired up with a homophobic government agent to investigate a suspicious crime. After any number of twists and turns, Jackie solves the mystery and seduces the formerly homophobic agent.[7] C.A.M.P.'s archenemy organization is B.U.T.C.H. (Brothers United to Crush Homosexuality) headed by the infamous Tiger Bey.

The Man from C.A.M.P. books were written quickly without significant editing, and sometimes were not published as written. As such, the original printings contain a number of typos and scenes reused from other works in the series. In the two recent compilations, the redundant scenes have been removed. [8] The recent compilations are significant because the original copies, by virtue of their obvious sexual orientation, were often disposed of or destroyed so that they would not reveal clues about their owners and their lives. [9] Robert Bonfils produced the paperback cover art for a number of the novels in the series, including The Man from C.A.M.P.[10]

[edit] Recurring Characters

Jackie Holmes, on the cover of Rally Round the Fag
Jackie Holmes, on the cover of Rally Round the Fag
Jackie Holmes 
Jackie is a witty, handsome and fabulous gay superspy sporting blond hair and a slight build with amazing strength and agility. Jackie is an even-keeled and capable detective with a strong libido, which comes in handy for gathering clues and seducing his more straight-laced crime fighting partners. He says, "I use sex as another weapon when I'm working."[11] Jackie occasionally appears in drag as a disguise and often has an obscure talent or gadget to get out of tight spots. Jackie is a millionaire who collects and repairs vintage automobiles; he also has a white poodle named Sophie who is trained to kill with her razor sharp teeth. (The depiction of the character was not influenced by the porn star John Holmes, who did not begin his film career until later in the decade.)[12]
Lou Upton 
Lou is an INTERPOL representative in his 40s who is by all appearances heterosexual. Lou acts as a primary contact who works to interest Jackie in potential crime cases. Lou introduces various government-based law enforcement members and assigns them to work on cases with Jackie Holmes.
Rich 
Rich is a 6 foot 5 inch tall man, rugged and built like a bull. He looks out for Jackie's interest by running the local C.A.M.P. office and providing, at the least, administrative assistance in Jackie's cases. Rich and Jackie have sexual relations, but the romantic aspect is mutually "held at arms length" due to the demanding and dangerous nature of Jackie's spy work.

[edit] Original Books

The Man from C.A.M.P. series includes nine original books written by Victor J. Banis.[13]

  1. The Gay Dogs (1967): A vicious gang under the leadership of the dominatrix Anna Lingus dognaps Lady Agatha's Yorkshire terrier, causing Jackie chivalrously to go to the rescue. [14]
  2. The Gay Dogs (1967): A vicious gang under the leadership of the dominatrix Anna Lingus dognaps Lady Agatha's Yorkshire terrier, causing Jackie chivalrously to go to the rescue. [15]
  3. The Gay Dogs (1967): A vicious gang under the leadership of the dominatrix Anna Lingus dognaps Lady Agatha's Yorkshire terrier, causing Jackie chivalrously to go to the rescue. [16]
  4. The Gay Dogs (1967): A vicious gang under the leadership of the dominatrix Anna Lingus dognaps Lady Agatha's Yorkshire terrier, causing Jackie chivalrously to go to the rescue. [17]
  5. The Gay Dogs (1967): A vicious gang under the leadership of the dominatrix Anna Lingus dognaps Lady Agatha's Yorkshire terrier, causing Jackie chivalrously to go to the rescue. [18]
  1. The Gay Dogs (1967): A vicious gang under the leadership of the dominatrix Anna Lingus dognaps Lady Agatha's Yorkshire terrier, causing Jackie chivalrously to go to the rescue. [19]
  2. The Gay Dogs (1967): A vicious gang under the leadership of the dominatrix Anna Lingus dognaps Lady Agatha's Yorkshire terrier, causing Jackie chivalrously to go to the rescue. [20]
  3. The Gay Dogs (1967): A vicious gang under the leadership of the dominatrix Anna Lingus dognaps Lady Agatha's Yorkshire terrier, causing Jackie chivalrously to go to the rescue. [21]

[edit] Spinoffs

In addition to the nine original books written by Victor J. Banis, three related texts by Elbert Barrow, a.k.a. "Lady Agatha," in which Banis had only partly a hand, a 10th novel, Gay-Safe (probably by Samuel Dodson, according to researcher Lynn Munroe), and a short story have appeared. [22]

  1. Sex and the Single Gay by Jackie Holmes, That Man from C.A.M.P. as told to Don Holliday (1967): one of the first gay self-help guides to appear.
  2. The C.A.M.P. Guide to Astrology by Lady Agatha and Jackie Holmes, as told to Don Holliday (1967).
  3. The C.A.M.P. Cookbook by Lady Agatha in conspiracy with Don Holliday (1968).
  4. Gay-Safe (1971): Jackie suspects B.U.T.C.H. is behind the death of Dr. Perry Robert, a founder of the Church of the Homosexual Community; LAPD Detective Tom Lattimer and Agent Andy Parks show up to help.[23]
  5. Jackie Returns (2007): In an original short story by Victor J. Banis, Jackie's cousin Jamie appears to lure him out of retirement.[24]

[edit] Related Works

In 1964 in the gay periodical Drum magazine, Allen J. Shapiro, writing as A. Jay, began a comic strip The Adventures of Harry Chess: That Man from A.U.N.T.I.E. (Agents Undercover Network To Investigate Evil.) The early strips were collected in The Uncensored Adventures of Harry Chess 0068 7/8: That Man from A.U.N.T.I.E. (1966). [25] Later Harry Chess joined FUGG (Federal Undercover Gay Goodguys); most of the episodes were published in the Gay Meatmen series published by Winston Leyland out of San Francisco.

The Man from Pansy, a novel very similar to The Man from C.A.M.P., appeared in 1967 and is the first in a short series of two gay-oriented pulp fiction novels written by Don Rico. The series' protagonist is hip secret agent Buzz Cardigan who plays gay to infiltrate an underworld of crime and blackmail. The second and final book in the series is The Daisy Dilemma, also published in 1967.[26]

The gay pornography novel S.U.C.K. by Rick Cummings (1972) has nothing to do with secret agents.[27]

[edit] Footnotes

  1. ^ Banis, Victor J. Spine Intact, Some Creases: Remembrances of a Paperback Writer. Genova, Italy: ECIG, 2004, page 123. Munroe, Lynn. "The Man from C.A.M.P." e*I*6 (Vol. 2, no. 1), January 2003. http://efanzines.com/EK/eI6/index.htm
  2. ^ Stryker, Susan. Queer Pulp: Perverted Passions from the Golden Age of the Paperback. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2001, pages 115 & 117.
  3. ^ Banis, Victor J. That Man from C.A.M.P.: Rebel without a Pause. Edited by Fabio Cleto. Binghamton, New York: Haworth Press (Southern Tier Editions), 2004, page 327.
  4. ^ Gunn, Drewey Wayne. The Gay Male Sleuth in Print and Film. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 2005, page 166.
  5. ^ Banis, Victor J. That Man from C.A.M.P.: Rebel without a Pause. Edited by Fabio Cleto. Binghamton, New York: Haworth Press (Southern Tier Editions), 2004, page 8.
  6. ^ Gunn, Drewey Wayne. The Gay Male Sleuth in Print and Film. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 2005, page 19.
  7. ^ Banis, Victor J. That Man from C.A.M.P.: Rebel without a Pause. Edited by Fabio Cleto. Binghamton, New York: Haworth Press (Southern Tier Editions), 2004, page xix.
  8. ^ Bronski, Michael, ed. Pulp Friction: Uncovering the Golden Age of Gay Male Pulps. New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 2003, page 17.
  9. ^ Banis, Victor J. Tales from C.A.M.P.: Jackie's Back! San Francisco: GLB Publishers, 2005, page 308.
  10. ^ Kemp, Earl. e*I*6 (Vol. 2, no. 1), January 2003. http://efanzines.com/EK/eI6/index.htm
  11. ^ Banis, Victor J. That Man from C.A.M.P.: Rebel without a Pause. Edited by Fabio Cleto. Binghamton, New York: Haworth Press (Southern Tier Editions), 2004, page 16.
  12. ^ Gunn, Drewey Wayne. The Gay Male Sleuth in Print and Film. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 2005, page 18. Banis, Victor J. Tales from C.A.M.P.: Jackie's Back! San Francisco: GLB Publishers, 2005, page 306.
  13. ^ Munroe, Lynn. "A Victor J. Banis Checklist." e*I*6 (Vol. 2, no. 1), January 2003. http://efanzines.com/EK/eI6/index.htm Banis, Victor J. Tales from C.A.M.P.: Jackie's Back! San Francisco: GLB Publishers, 2005, pages 308-310 (checklist compiled by Drewey Wayne Gunn).
  14. ^ The Gay Dogs. San Diego: Greenleaf Classics (Ember Library 386), 1967. Reprinted with a foreword by Victor J. Banis. Wildside Press, 2007.
  15. ^ The Gay Dogs. San Diego: Greenleaf Classics (Ember Library 386), 1967. Reprinted with a foreword by Victor J. Banis. Wildside Press, 2007.
  16. ^ The Gay Dogs. San Diego: Greenleaf Classics (Ember Library 386), 1967. Reprinted with a foreword by Victor J. Banis. Wildside Press, 2007.
  17. ^ The Gay Dogs. San Diego: Greenleaf Classics (Ember Library 386), 1967. Reprinted with a foreword by Victor J. Banis. Wildside Press, 2007.
  18. ^ The Gay Dogs. San Diego: Greenleaf Classics (Ember Library 386), 1967. Reprinted with a foreword by Victor J. Banis. Wildside Press, 2007.
  19. ^ The Gay Dogs. San Diego: Greenleaf Classics (Ember Library 386), 1967. Reprinted with a foreword by Victor J. Banis. Wildside Press, 2007.
  20. ^ The Gay Dogs. San Diego: Greenleaf Classics (Ember Library 386), 1967. Reprinted with a foreword by Victor J. Banis. Wildside Press, 2007.
  21. ^ The Gay Dogs. San Diego: Greenleaf Classics (Ember Library 386), 1967. Reprinted with a foreword by Victor J. Banis. Wildside Press, 2007.
  22. ^ Munroe, Lynn. "A Victor J. Banis Checklist." e*I*6 (Vol. 2, no. 1), January 2003. http://efanzines.com/EK/eI6/index.htm Banis, Victor J. Tales from C.A.M.P.: Jackie's Back! San Francisco: GLB Publishers, 2005, pages 310.
  23. ^ Gay-Safe. San Diego: Greenleaf Classics (Pleasure Reader 306), 1971.
  24. ^ Banis, Victor J. Come This Way. Nederland, Texas: Regal Cress Enterprises, 2007, pages 124-131.
  25. ^ Jay, A. The Uncensored Adventures of Harry Chess 0068 7/8: That Man from A.U.N.T.I.E. Philadelphia: Trojan Books, 1966. See Gunn, Drewey Wayne. The Gay Male Sleuth in Print and Film. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 2005, pages 97, 176-177.
  26. ^ Rico, Don [Donato]. The Man from Pansy. New York: Lancer Books, 1967. The Daisy Dilemma. New York: Lancer Boosk, 1967.
  27. ^ Norman, Tom. American Gay Erotic Paperbacks: A Bibliography. Privately printed, 1994.

[edit] External links