A couple of years ago, my brother gave me what appeared to be a reproduction of a nineteenth-century brothel token for my birthday. One side of the coin “All Night $3 Check” is engraved and the other side reads “Uncle Sam Hotel 12 Beautiful Young Ladies to Assist You Yuma Arizona Territory.” Further … [Read more...] about Brothel Token: Fantasy or Repro?
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Books & Herbs 1936-1939
This past year, like many millennials in their 30’s, I have accumulated over twenty house plants. I have also become interested in the different uses of herbs and have made three different salves and candles. I was excited when I stumbled upon a collection of herb books from c. 1930s-1940s. Two of … [Read more...] about Books & Herbs 1936-1939
A Prescription for Married Couples: Sex Manuals & Marriage Guides 1850-1952
While browsing in a bookstore in Philly called Brickbat Books, my partner handed me a booklet encased in a plastic sleeve. It was a 1952 manual titled, Sex Manual for Those Married or About to Be Written for the Layman by George Lombard Kelly and the foreword by Robert B. Greenblatt. The manual is … [Read more...] about A Prescription for Married Couples: Sex Manuals & Marriage Guides 1850-1952
Stepped into the World of Van Gogh
My partner and I attended the Vincent Van Gogh exhibit, Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience, at the Tower Theater in Philadelphia. We had no idea what to expect and did not know what else was included other than the projection show and even there we did not know how long it would be or if it was a … [Read more...] about Stepped into the World of Van Gogh
La Longue Durée and The Last Unicorn
In a forest where the season is only ever Spring, existed one Unicorn – the last. The troubling realization that she was the only unicorn led her on a journey to find the others. Along the way she befriends Schmendrick the Magician and Molly Grue, who accompany her on her quest. Together they travel … [Read more...] about La Longue Durée and The Last Unicorn
Lights! Camera! Lecture…
I just completed a talk that I presented this past January and I am working on another one for this March. The January lecture was my eleventh or twelfth talk and it took me a bit to figure out what works best for me. When I say took me a bit, I mean I kept doing something that obviously did not … [Read more...] about Lights! Camera! Lecture…
First Time Publishing an Article
This year, I had my first article published outside of my work’s newsletter. I was over the moon when I held the magazine and flipped to page 77 and saw my name! You bet I memorized the page number. I started writing small articles for my job’s newsletter in 2016. The articles are short due to the … [Read more...] about First Time Publishing an Article
The Cyclical History of Erotic Publications: From George Akarman to the Circus of Books (1850 to 2019)
After years of reading about 19th-century erotic publishers, I had to watch Netflix’s documentary, Circus of Books (2019), on the gay adult bookshop of the same name in California. The documentary focused on the couple, Karen and Barry Mason, who took over the bookshop in 1976 and became the largest … [Read more...] about The Cyclical History of Erotic Publications: From George Akarman to the Circus of Books (1850 to 2019)
Behind the History
People have their own perceptions of how individuals in different career fields actually do their jobs. There used to be a great meme that was divided up in different sections explaining what different people think individuals in particular careers do. The sections were “What my mom thinks I do. … [Read more...] about Behind the History
The Origin Story: The Book that Started it All, The Murder of Helen Jewett: The Life and Death of a Prostitute in Nineteenth-Century New York by Patricia Cline Cohen
When I was writing up the citations for the previous blog, one of the sources was a secondary source that I have been using for years. The book hits a sentimental nerve that I felt urged to write about. Whenever I give talks or discuss my research, I am always questioned with how I became … [Read more...] about The Origin Story: The Book that Started it All, The Murder of Helen Jewett: The Life and Death of a Prostitute in Nineteenth-Century New York by Patricia Cline Cohen
