Sporting Life : GLBT Athletics and Cultural Change from the 1960s to Today - Guest Curator Jim Provenzano - through 2006 at the GLBT Historical Society

A Home for Our History: Gala 2006
honoring
Billie Jean King and Esera Tuaolo
Food, drink, live entertainment, silent auction
Thursday, Sept 28
Terra, 511 Harrison St.
San Francisco
Tickets
www.glbthistory.org

Rick Gerharter tour of his exhibit
"Capturing The Moment"
Wednesday, October 11, 6:00-7:30pm

Book talk for Bitchfest
10 Years of Cultural Criticism from Bitch Magazine
Tuesday, October 24, 6:00-8:00pm

American Association of
Housing & Services for the Aging
Saturday, November 4, 6:00pm

Photojournalist panel
Wednesday, November 15, 6:00-7:30pm

Wednesday, December 6, 6:00-7:30pm
Roundtable: Is there a need for a gay press?
Hosted by Randy Alfred and the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association Northern California Chapter

Tue. Nov. 28, 6:00-7:30pm
Gay Neighborhoods
GLBT Historical Society will host “Are Gay Neighborhoods Worth Saving?” This roundtable with community leaders kicks off a new series, “Queer in the City: GLBT Neighborhoods and Urban Planning."

Thursday, December 7th, 6 to 7:30PM
Author Reading and Discussion
Different Daughters: A History of the Daughters of Bilitis and the Birth of the Lesbian Rights Movement
GLBT Historical Society hosts historian Marcia M. Gallo in conversation about her groundbreaking new book on the San Francisco founding on the Daughters of Bilitis and the emergence of a modern lesbian rights movement.

Sporting Life Closing Party
Dec. 13 6pm-9pm at exhibit
657 Mission St. #300

More Info

www.glbthistory.org

YouTube low-res. version

Sporting Life Timeline
(1 minute; 10mg, mpg file)

Sporting Life Timeline
Long Version
(2 minutes; 7MG mpeg file)

Photo Gallery

"It is the emotional impact of actually seeing the physical evidence, the personal sports memorabilia of our community so proudly displayed, which will connect with a much wider audience and secure this exhibitďż˝s place in GLBT history. - Gene Dermody, for OutSports.com

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"The rich and colorful exhibit... documents the thriving gay athletic scene that includes such organizations as the San Francisco Gay Softball League, the Frontrunners running club, the Spikes soccer club and the San Francisco Track and Field Club.

The exhibit is filled with rare items, gleaming under lights and organized by sport from track and field to bowling. In one case are original medals from the first Gay Games that had to have the word "Olympics" removed because of an injunction filed by the United States Olympic Committee." - Sean Webby, San Jose Mercury News

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"Provenzano, the guest curator and designer of the exhibit, and (Don) Romesburg, the exhibit director, have done a first-rate job in helping capture the underappreciated role gays and lesbians have had in helping shape sports." - Dwight Chapin, Chronicle Senior Writer, San Francisco Chronicle

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"Sports columnist Jim Provenzano has fashioned an Emerald City version of a school gym's trophy cabinet, illustrating the community's inclusive reputation, and surpassing straight sports culture." - Kevin Davis, Bay Area Reporter

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"What a moving record of the gay movement in sports! Including posters, clippings, video footage and paraphernalia related to Tom Waddell, the Gay Games, and other aspects of sports, this is a display you must see. Guest curator Jim Provenzano received a well-deserved commendation from a bustling crowd, including State Assemblyman Mark Leno and city Supervisor Bevan Dufty. - Donna Sachet, "On the Town" Bay Area Reporter

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Sporting Life explores how Bay Area LGBT athletics have challenged homophobia and created community. From early 1970s gay softball games versus the police to the launch of the now-worldwide Gay Games, to the breaking down of barriers in professional sports, the way we play has transformed society. Today, over 4,000 openly LGBT Bay Area athletes participate annually, breaking records, defying stereotypes, and inspiring others.

One of the many evocative items is a rare 1979 Glenn Burke Oakland Athletics baseball card. Burke, credited with inventing the "high five," had been traded to the A's from the Dodgers, largely due to homophobia. Ongoing antigay hostility and a knee injury led him soon after to leave pro ball. Afterwards, he became a celebrated member of San Francisco gay softball teams. In 1982, he became the first pro baseball player to come out.

"Through months of collaboration with the LGBT sports community, collecting uniforms, photos, and artifacts, Guest Curator Jim Provenzano has created a dynamic, entertaining, and moving exhibit," said GLBTHS Executive Director Terence Kissack. "Sporting Life is our most ambitious exhibit yet, incorporating multimedia elements and a coordinated oral history project."

Guest Curator/Designer - Jim Provenzano
Exhibit Director - Don Romesburg
Lighting Designer - Jon Retsky
Installation Specialist - Elizabeth Cornu
Installation Assistants - Paco Echevarria,
Pedro Bernal, Adalberto Castrillon
Installation Consultant - John Mello
Multimedia Director - Don Frazell
Oral Historian - David Lamble
Fundraising - Anne Ludwig, Joy Burrell
Scenic Assistance - Rob Oakley
Publicist - Jason Riggs
Promotional Graphic Design - Creatis Group

Sponsors
Gay and Lesbian Tennis Federation
Golden Gate Wrestling Club
San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco Spikes Soccer Club
Fastsigns, Inc.

This project is made possible by a grant from the California Council for the Humanities as part of the Council's statewide California Stories Initiative.

Participating Athletic Groups
Association of Gay and Lesbian Martial Artists, Barbary Coast Boating Club, SF Gay Basketball League, Bay Area Distance Runners, Bowling Leagues, Cheer SF, Different Spokes/SF, Gay & Lesbian Tennis Federation, Federation of Gay Games, Golden Gate Wrestling Club, Golden Gate Women's Rugby Club, Healing Waters, Northern California Rainbow Divers, Oakland Banshees Tackle Football Team, San Francisco Bay Blades Rowing Club, San Francisco Quakes Hockey, SAGA North Ski & Snowboard Club, San Francisco Fog Rugby Football Club, San Francisco FrontRunners, San Francisco Gay Softball League, San Francisco Pool Association, San Francisco Sailing Club, San Francisco Shockwaves Flag Football, San Francisco Spikes Soccer Club, San Francisco Track & Field Club, San Francisco Tsunami Polo, San Francisco Tsunami Swim Club, Team San Francisco, Triangle TaeKwon Do Club, San Francisco Women's Flag Football Association

Photographers and Artists
Todd Aghazadeh, Rob Anderson, Stefanie Atkinson, Clifford Baker, Crawford Barton, Tom Bianchi, Joan Bobkoff, Nancy Boutilier, Bill Bowers, Cathy Cade, Darlene Capitelli, Kevin Caudill, Jane Philomen Cleland, Phyllis Christopher, Rink Foto, Judy Francesconi, Paul Fusco, Don Garlow, Rick Gerharter, Mick Hicks, Joan Hilty, JoSon, Henry I. Leleu, Dave Martin, Jack McGowan, Dan Nicoletta, Mark Oberlin, Elena Olzark, Tony Plewick, Jill Posener, Jim Provenzano, Robert Pruzan, Emery Reiff, Steven Savage, Bill Strubbe, Greg Weiner.

Special Thanks, Businesses
Bay Area Reporter, Creatis Group, FullBloom Baking Company, Gold's Gym, The Pilsner Inn, Lefty's Sports Store, Wolfe Video

Sponsoring Organization
The Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Historical Society and Museum is an enthusiastic host for Sporting Life and views it as an important means of meeting its overall mission in a new, entertaining, and accessible way. The GLBT Historical Society works to increase the public understanding, appreciation and affirmation of the history and culture of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and other sexual minority individuals and communities. In order to fulfill that mission the Society operates a museum and maintains extensive archives that document and explore the lives of GLBT people in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. The Society makes these materials available to researchers and community members and displays them in onsite, offsite, and virtual exhibits.

Special events with teams and celebrities will take place throughout the exhibit's run. Please visit the website at www.glbthistory.org.

657 Mission St, #300
San Francisco, CA 94105
(415) 777-5455
www.glbthistory.org

The GLBT Historical Society's mission is to increase public understanding, appreciation, and affirmation of the history and culture of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and other sexual minority individuals and communities.

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