Male homosexuals don't wear negligees

In the 20s and 30s, "gay" was not used to designate all homosexuals. It was the term used by the fairies to describe themselves and their lifestyle. (It was also used as a code word in exploring whether or not a new acquaintance was homosexual.) "Gay" was only used with homosexual connotations inside the homosexual community.The fairies were the subgroup of homosexual men who were obviously effeminate, given to wearing makeup and flamboyant clothing, including female clothing when they could get away with it, and in general fitting the stereotype that screams, "I'm gay."Man could not wear female clothing in public in New York because it was illegal there and they could be arrested. In private was different.Grant is not saying, "Because I just became a homosexual." He is saying, "Because I just became a fairy," when he is asked why he is wearing female clothing. It is a direct answer to the question, not something about feeling happy or carefree.But only homosexuals and their friends understood that.For more information see: Gay New York: Gender, Urban Culture, and the Making of the Gay Male World, 1890-1940 by George Chauncey amazon.com/Gay-New-York-Culture-1890-1940/dp/0465026214/ref=sr_1_1?s=b ooks&ie=UTF8&qid=1334692247&sr=1-1_______________For easy markup see http://userscripts.org/scripts/show/42255