Bears, for the uninitiated, are gay men who defiantly challenge society's ideal of physical appearance, who celebrate the fact that they are often large, hairy, and don't give a hoot about what fashions are parading down the runway. Ron Suresha's thought-provoking, humorous long-form interviews with men, including editor David Bergman, cartoonist Tim Barela, and comedian and writer Bruce Vilanch examine questions of gay male stereotyping, commodification of the human body, the oppressiveness of the "physical ideal," and how body image affects personal growth.
In 25 candid discussions, Bears on Bears brings together 57 contributors from around the world, from a rich variety of perspectives and backgrounds. With lighthearted playfulness as well as serious analysis, these Bears (as well as some nonbearish Bear-lovers) describe themselves, their lives and loves, their sense of masculinity, and their flourishing community-cum-culture. Widely excerpted in the gay media, Bears on Bears is the first interview book ever (gay-themed or otherwise) compiled primarily from online interactions. This groundbreaking collection of voices gathered from in and around the edge of this unique culture is both entertaining and enlightening.
Contributors include:
Tim Barela (Temecula, CA) * David Bergman (Baltimore) * Michael Bronski (Cambridge, MA) * Van Buckley (SF) * Craig Byrnes (Springfield, VA) * Drew Campbell (SF) * Eduardo Chavez (Mexico City, Mexico) * Al Cotton (Atlanta, GA) * D. Alex Dammon (Peoria, IL) * Lou Dattilo (Austin, TX) * Steve Dyer (Boston) * Steve Evans (NYC/ Newark, NJ) * Jack Fritscher (SF) * Dave Gerard (Boston) * Jeff Glover (SF) * Rich Hatch (Middletown, RI) * Mike Hernandez (Anza, CA) * Wayne Hoffman (NYC) * Seumas Hyslop (Sydney, NSW, Australia) * Terry Jamro (Boston) * Arnie Kantrowitz (NYC) * Brian Kearns (Toronto) * Richard Labont=E9 (SF/ Calabogie, Ontario) * Gene Landry (Brooklyn/ Minneapolis, MN) * Manny Lim (Boston) * Ali Lopez (Santa Rosa/ DC) * Tim Martin (Louisville, KY) * Dr. Lawrence Mass (NYC) * Heath McKay (Boston) * Rev. Jim Mitulski (SF) * Tim Morrison (Kansas City, MO/ SF) * Xavier Navarro (Barcelona, Spain) * Michael Patterson (Sacramento, CA) * Marcelo Perales (Buenos Aires, Argentina) * Frank Perricone (Mobile, AL) * Glen Purdon (Port Elizabeth, South Africa) * Jack Radcliffe (SF) * Mike Ramsey (Tucson/ Pittsburgh) * Kirk Read (SF) * Matt Rice (SF) * Eric Rofes (SF) * Mali Sahin (Ankara, Turkey) * Alex Schell (NYC) * Woody Shimko (Tokyo, Japan/ Provincetown, MA) * Adam Steg (New Orleans, LA) * Justin Spooner (Port Talbot, Wales, UK) * Mark Thompson (LA) * Sen. Rick Trombly (Concord, NH) * Pete Vafiades (SF) * George Varas (NYC) * Bruce Vilanch (LA) * Reed Wilgoren (Everett, MA) * Danny Williams (SF) * Chris Wittke (Boston) * Rex Wockner (San Diego) * Les K. Wright (Fitchburg, MA)
Ron Suresha is a writer and editor living in Boston. His writing has appeared in The Gay and Lesbian Review, Lambda Book Report, American Bear, Gay Community News, White Crane Journal, Art & Understanding, Southern Voice, In Newsweekly, Darshan, and Visionary, and the anthologies The Bear Book, The Bear Book 2, My First Time 2, Bar Stories, Quickies 2, and Tales from the Bear Cult. He is also the editor of an anthology of Bear-themed fiction, Bearotica, forthcoming from Alyson Publications in April 2002.
