Rare 1982 Gay Games Artifact Found
In 1982, there was no internet, no cell phones, no email, no social media, no personal computers, and no cell phones. Yet, somehow planning for the first Gay Games happened. To build national awareness for the event and raise funds, the “Gay Olympic Games National Torch Run” took place, going from the famous Stonewall Inn in New York City between 13 June and 22 August, making 31 stops before arriving in San Francisco. Here are a few photos from that event.
Publicity photo for the National Torch Run. Photo: FGG
Map of the 1982 National Torch Run. Photo: Niv Ben-Yehuda
The Torch arrives in San FranciscoRun. Photo: FGG
The lighting of the flame at Gay Games I Opening Ceremony by Olympians George Frenn and Susan McGreivy. Photo: Lisa Kanemoto
The author of this article would also like to call out and thank Kim Shephard from Sydney who ran the bowling tournament. He did a great job while bringing home a medal in the team event! Kim is at the far left in the photo below, helping to hold up the flag of Mexico.
The signed Olympic Gay Games banner now back in San Francisco in the FGG Arhcives. Photo: Paula Bloodsaw
You can’t help but notice that the word “OLYMPIC” is marked out on the banner. Some readers may not remember that the original event name was “Gay Olympic Games.” But, on 9 August 1982, in the midst of the National Torch Run, the United States Olympic Committee obtained a restraining order against Tom Waddell and the other Gay Games I organizers preventing them from using the word “Olympics.” With just 19 days before the Opening Ceremony, the organizers had to manually cover over the “O” word on all kinds of printed materials, including medals and this banner.
It was a very scary time, and the lawsuit eventually was brought to the US Supreme Court in 1987, after Tom Waddell had passed away from AIDS. You can read more details about this dark chapter of Gay Games history in post #13 from the 40-post “Passing The Torch” series that’s on the FGG website HERE.
This unfortunate episode led directly to the event being renamed to what it still is today: the Gay Games. Here is a rare poster that survived all the attempts to remove the word "Olympics" from all printed materials.
As Paula Bloodsaw continues to organize their affairs, she expects to find more photos and other artifacts from the early Gay Games. As the FGG’s Archivist, I look forward to seeing what additional treasures she unearths.