Friday, May 21, 2010

Gay Cowboys

Bizarro is brought to you today by Flamenco Segway.

Here's a fun little ditty about a topic I've discussed here before. Among groups known for being homophobic are "cowboy types," whatever that means exactly. I was raised in Oklahoma and Texas and can vouch for the accuracy of this stereotype. In fact, when I was a teenager in Tulsa, I was often accused by strangers of being gay simply because I did not dress like a local hick. (I leaned more toward the British punk rockers at the time.)

But viewed objectively, one can't argue that cowboy clothing is unusually feminine: pearl buttons, embroidered shirts (frequently of flowers), fringe, scarves, pants with the butt and crotch cut out (chaps), high heel boots with pointy toes (often with embossed flowers and swirls), big shiny belt buckles with more flowers and swirls on belts with yet more embossed flowers and swirls and dangling handguns (the ultimate phallic symbol), flamboyant hats that make Truman Capote's seem macho by comparison.

Perhaps getting in touch with my own feminine side, I wear a lot of western shirts, though not the rest of the garb. I'm a fan of fancy, vintage cowboy shirts and have a collection of about two dozen. As a matter of fact, I'd really love to get hold of one of those outlandish suits that country western performers used to wear at the Grand Ole Opry, but I'm not holding my breath. I can't afford a new one and finding an old one that fits and is in good shape is a long shot at best. It's not the sort of thing you come across on Craigslist.

It is a common belief that those who complain most about gays are most likely to be closeted gays themselves, just as those who champion family values are the most likely to be caught with an underage prostitute. Maybe Brokeback Mountain is more common than we know.

15 comments:

Unknown said...

Dan, did you celebrate "Everyone Draw Muhammad" day yesterday?

Unknown said...

They are called the "Nudie Suit" after the original tailor who made them, Jamie Nudie. Plenty of Info at the site, and I bet that with the proper name you just might be able to locate one. Many Opry stars have been buried in them.

Gabi said...

Again, nothing to do with the comic, HI-larious btw, but you have won a Cheesey Award for Best Blog and an Honorary Cheesey Award for being an awesome cartoonist. Keep up the good work,

C.F.

dedicated horseman said...

Fuck you and your fag friends. Maybe you are a queer and take it in the ass by your brother, but I dont need to hear about it. All you fuckers need rounded up and gassed. Hitler had it right, to the gas chambers with ur asses.

Piraro said...

@Josh...not really my thing so I didn't do anything for it. The idea was to publish them and I can't really do that sort of thing in Bizarro so I didn't bother. Fun idea, though.

@shipping troll..Thanks for the link! I didn't know that and learned a lot. Gotta get me a Nudie suit someday!

@Cheese Face...I am honored, sir.

@Moose...don't know if you're a regular reader who is satirizing an idiot or an actual idiot, but I got a good laugh from your comment. Thanks!

James said...

Moose: You are an idiot.

Allan Koay said...

i will repost something a friend posted on Facebook, because it voices my sentiments exactly:

Why do so many people want to make insulting comments or draw insulting images of the Prophet Mohammed? Is it to show that you have a right to freedom of speech? Is it because you don't like Islam? Do you do the same about the Buddha, Rama, Yahweh and Jesus? Why set out to insult proponents of a religion in which you do not believe?

there is really a very fine line between satire or good-humoured fun and just plain insult and hatred. and i think everyone needs to really consider this for their actions, be they cartoonists, writers, filmmakers or any other creative persons.

Anonymous said...

I think Willie Nelson has a song called "Cowboys are secretly, frequently fond of each other" or something like that. Also, Moose might think about 'Rentboy.com'.
god bless.

Piraro said...

@Allan Koay...I agree that the Muhammed day thing didn't make a lot of sense to me. I have no inherent respect for invisible people who live in the sky, but I think while most Americans criticize Islam for its lack of "free speech", they are blind to how sensitive they are to images of Jesus. If hundreds of cartoonists made fun of Jesus on the same day, there would be a public outcry and the meat puppets on Fox News would have on-air orgasms of umbrage.

Unknown said...

Piraro: don't forget that the issue that sparked this was that South Park was forbidden from showing Muhammad, but was allowed to make fun of Jesus, Buddah, and other religious figures. It's hypocrisy that's the issue.

Jeff Pollet said...

"In fact, when I was a teenager in Tulsa, I was often accused by strangers of being gay simply because I did not dress like a local hick. (I leaned more toward the British punk rockers at the time.)

But viewed objectively, one can't argue that cowboy clothing is unusually feminine..."

Of course, confusing being gay with being feminine is exactly the mistake that folks who make fun of those who dress as British rockers from the 70s for being gay make..."feminine" does not equal gay. Gay folks can be found all up and down the masculine/feminine spectrums.

Piraro said...

@Josh...I didn't know that about South Park, thanks for the info. I'm guessing Comedy Central didn't want to be targeted by terrorists, but who knows. All religions are rife with hipocrisy.

@jeff...of course, you are right. But there is a large portion of gay men who are feminine and lesbians who are masculine. Not ALL, by any means, you're right.

Allan Koay said...

i thought Brokeback Mountain put all our doubts to rest already?

J said...

Well, I'm gay, and I thought this cartoon was a hoot!

Thanks, Dan!

Foye said...

No one has had the guts to be the first to click the "like" button. I am reminded of the gnu herd at the crocodile river.