Were You Not Allowed By Your Parents To Watch Tv Shows/movies With Gay Content?

[JayPR]

I would like to know if your parents banned you from watching TV shows or movies with PG gay content when you were younger.

I grew up in the late 80s and 90s, so there were not many shows or movies with gay content, and, besides, my parents are pretty liberal. But I have a friend (from a Southern conservative household) that told me that Will & Grace was banned at his house and his mother wouldn't allow any shows or movies were gay life was portrayed.

Did that happen to you? What shows were prohibited?

 

[Beanie]

My parents would yeah, usually when they didn’t know it was coming or it was a comedy they could get into. They wouldn’t turn it off because they saw gay content which is good. They aren’t the most open minded of people but the accepted me without question when I came out and have broadened their views since.

 

[deleted1074483]

I'm so old that we didn't even recognise something as being 'gay' think Danny la Rue or Larry Grayson, are you being served etc - early 70s stuff, completely naive back them parents inlcuded !!

 

[chancesare]

It wasn't really an issue growing up for me because there wasn't much on that was gay. If there was, I would have been sensitive and turned it off (i.e. because I had a thing for guys). The closest thing we saw was the images of guys in bikini underwear and dresses from Pride Parades on the news, and that was never a welcomes site.

My mom was so uncomfortable with anything sexual, if two straight people were kissing in a G-rated movie from the 60s, she would start talking because she was uncomfortable with it.

 

[Andrue]

Well, back in my day...

We're talking the early to mid-'60s here. There was no "gay" anything on TV. None. At all.

Uncle Miltie was the closest you'd get. The parents would let me watch the Milton Berle Show, he'd occasionally pop on with a dress. This was a schtick of his but he was straight as can be. So "no homo" definitely applied here.

You could call him the precursor to Dame Edna.

Milton Berle in drag with Lucille Ball, Desi Arnaz

The only "gay" to be had was looking at people like Jan Michael Vincent or Peter Tork and just daydreaming.

Jan-Michael Vincent, Peter Tork of The Monkeys

Oh, I kinda lied: Liberace would pop on other people's variety shows but the parents were utterly oblivious. They even went to see him live once. Flying around above the stage in his sequined cape, I'm told. They thought this was a hoot.

Liberace. Not gay. Nope.

But they hated homos. Most disgusting people around, according to my father and said with as much disgust and spittle as possible.
Next worse thing: those damn long-haired hippies. And those Pakies, oh boy. Hookers, trash people. Etc., etc., etc..
My father: a real charmer he was.

If there had ever been a (known) gay person on the TeeVee, they'd have shut it off themselves so they wouldn't have to see it.

 

[herbho]

When I was little, I would go to my room and tell my parents I was going to watch a sitcom called " Angel," when I was really tuning into " My Three Sons" so I could stare at the asses of Tim Considine and Don Grady. I thought if they knew my motives I would not be able to watch the show anymore.

 

[keenobserver]

I think a lot of gay material in media, tv and films went over my parents heads. They never in my life restricted what I could watch or read. I remember checking out books at the local libraries and the librarians calling my mother to okay a book that in the librarian's opinion was 'too adult,' but mom was always .'whatever he wants to read is whatever he wants to read.'

 

[Baro]

Gay content wasn't explicitly banned in my house, but it wasn't welcome. It wasn't very common though, so it wasn't much of an issue. I do remember a few instances where there'd be a gay kiss or similar on a random TV show or movie, and my parents making a huge deal out of how gross it was. I never acknowledged their reaction, but was upset about it for reasons I didn't understand at the time. Big fucking surprise, haha.

 

[StaringIsCaring]

Yeah queer as folk they banned and once two girls made out on mtv and mom freaked and wanted to know what channel so I put in a random channel. Didn’t want to lose mtv.

That last one was really weird because I think we see heteros make out all the time.

 

[cedarizzo]

I grew up in the late 70's/80's. I don't remember my parents telling us we couldn't watch something, but there wasn't a lot of gay material on tv at the time.

I don't remember a lot of gay characters on tv at the time. But I do remember at the end of the 80's, ABC had a show called "30 Something". There was 2 gay men on the show, and at least 1 episode dealt with their relationship. If I remember correctly, I think part of the show was them in bed together.

At the time, I was starting to come out of the closet, but I was so afraid of my family finding out, so I watched that show in my bedroom with the door closed. I didn't want my parents or siblings finding out I watched a show about gay people. Now, I find it pretty stupid. My parents were actually very liberal and my mom was very open and understanding. She died a few years later and I always regret that I never got to be open with her.

 

[Steheadstrong]

Not really my parents didn't really care that much I think they got slightly uncomfortable with a gay kiss on TV but they never said anything about it one of my first gay kiss I saw on TV was in coronation street with Todd kissing nick n first gay sex scene was footballers wives