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“I went to gay parties. I’'m a good dancer, so I
had my pick of partners. Just as I had my pick of
bed partners. :

“I got to know about the theatre, ballet, opera. I
started reading more books. With gay people I got
the college education—at least in culture—that I
couldn’t afford. Lenny and I stayed friends and for
a couple of years I worked in the designing room of
his jewelry business. Good pay—and a job you can
always find work in.

“Then a queen offered me the business I’ve got
today, a dry cleaning shop. He was sick, had to
move west. At first he paid me to run the business.
Then he leased it to me with an option to buy. In a
few years I bought him out. Now I’ve got three
shops, annuities to guarantee my old age. I travel to
Europe every couple of years.

“As for sex, I'm no chicken but I'm still going
strong. I can put a man’s shoes under my bed any
time I want. So what do I think of gay life? It’s
great. It’s given more to me than I'd ever have had
otherwise. Maybe I'm cold and selfish. Except for
Lenny I've never come close to anyone. I’ve never
loved. That’s missing.

“When I’m being nice to me, I think it’s because I
was a Negro in a white man’s world, that I was