1960s gay book series
The Man from C.A.M.P. is a series of ten gay pulp fiction novels published under the pseudonym of Don Holliday. The original nine were written by Victor J. Banis between 1966 and 1968; a tenth by an uncertain author appeared in 1971. The series first emerged during a period when gay paperback titles began spoofing popular genre fiction. As such, they are part of the great gay paperback explosion that "catered to most every taste in men's genre fiction," including detective stories and spy thrillers. According to Banis, the series was inspired by the characters "Batman and Robin", and is a spoof of the James Bond series and the television show "The Man from U.N.C.L.E."
The series is significant because it offers the first positive portrayal of a gay secret agent in fiction, Jackie Holmes.
Series introduction.
C.A.M.P., whose name references the camp aesthetic, is described as "an underground organization dedicated to the protection and advancement of homosexuals." C.A.M.P. works in coordination with law enforcement agencies around the globe, including INTERPOL. The meaning of the acronym C.A.M.P. is never given, but the series' protagonist, Jackie Holmes, a gay, seductive and capable international secret agent, allows that "the C might stand for sucker." The general formula for each book involves Jackie being paired up with a homophobic government agent to investigate a suspicious crime. After any number of twists and turns, Jackie solves the mystery and seduces the formerly homophobic agent. C.A.M.P.'s archenemy organization is B.U.T.C.H. (Brothers United to Crush Homosexuality) headed by the infamous Tiger Bey.
The Man from C.A.M.P. books were written quickly without significant editing, and sometimes were not published as written. As such, the original printings contain a number of typos and scenes reused from other works in the series. In the two recent compilations, the redundant scenes have been removed. The recent compilations are significant because the original copies, by virtue of their obvious sexual orientation, were often disposed of or destroyed so that they would not reveal clues about their owners and their lives. Robert Bonfils produced the paperback cover art for all the novels in the series, except "Gothic Gaye", the cover of which was illustrated by Darryl Milsap.
Original books.
The "Man from C.A.M.P." series includes nine original books written by Victor J. Banis and published by Greenleaf Classics under their Leisure Books, Companion Books, Ember Library, and Late Hour Library brands.
Spinoffs.
In addition to the nine original books written by Victor J. Banis, three related texts by Elbert Barrow, a.k.a. "Lady Agatha," in which Banis had only partly a hand, a 10th novel, "Gay-Safe" (probably by Samuel Dodson, according to researcher Lynn Munroe), and a short story have appeared.
A spin-off series is in development, Agents of C.A.M.P., on behalf of the Victor J. Banis Family Foundation. The series will begin with "The Golden Doppelbangers", being written by the project lead, Lauren Fox.
Related works.
In 1965 in the newsletter of the Philadelphia homophile organization Janus Society, Allen J. Shapiro, writing as A. Jay, began a comic strip "The Adventures of Harry Chess: That Man from A.U.N.T.I.E." (Agents Undercover Network To Investigate Evil). The early strips were collected in "The Uncensored Adventures of Harry Chess 0068 7/8: That Man from A.U.N.T.I.E." (1966). Later Harry Chess joined FUGG (Federal Undercover Gay Goodguys); most of the episodes were re-published in the "Meatmen" comic anthologies published by Winston Leyland out of San Francisco.
"The Man from Pansy," a novel very similar to "The Man from C.A.M.P.", appeared in 1967 and is the first in a short series of three gay-oriented pulp fiction novels written by Don Rico. The series' protagonist is hip secret agent Buzz Cardigan who plays gay to infiltrate an underworld of crime and blackmail. The second book in the series is "The Daisy Dilemma", also published in 1967, the third is "The Passion Flower Puzzle", 1968.
Footnotes.
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