GAY HEAD



I went through some of (Senior) Scholastic Magazine today, and while the

kid stuff can drive you nuts, there are some slang items to be found.

"Gay Head" appeared as early as the 1930s. I didn't have time to trace

the first column of "Boy dates Girl."

A traditional explanation is that "gay" comes from "gaycat." The

problem I have is that "gaycat" was around since the 1890s, and the "gaycat"

tramp of the hobo world was old news by 1941. Random House HDAS has a clear

1941 "gay"="homosexual." However, around this time, Gay Head's "Boy dates

Girl" was extremely popular. If we can somewhere find a humorous citation of

a Gay Head parody "Boy dates Boy," our life would be easier.

A 1937 full-page Scholastic ad for the "Boy Dates Girl" book called Gay

Head "your own Emily Post."

Is she gay, too?

The plot thickens....



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