Rare Gay Olympic Games Poster c.1982
- CREATOR Designed and Illustrated by Robert Kalthoff. Printed by C. Howard Inc., San Francisco, Ca.
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DATE OF MANUFACTURE c.1982.
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MATERIALS AND TECHNIQUES Lithograph, Paper Mounted on Foam core.
- CONDITION Good. Wear consistent with age and use.
- DIMENSIONS H 14 in. W 22 in.
HISTORY
The original event name was “Gay Olympic Games.” But, on 9 August 1982, in the midst of the National Torch Run, the United States Olympic Committee obtained a restraining order against Tom Waddell and the other Gay Games I organizers preventing them from using the word “Olympics.” With just 19 days before the Opening Ceremony, the organizers had to manually cover over the “O” word on all kinds of printed materials, including medals and this banner.
It was a very scary time, and the lawsuit eventually was brought to the US Supreme Court in 1987, after Tom Waddell had passed away from AIDS. This unfortunate episode led directly to the event being renamed to what it still is today: the Gay Games. Here is a rare poster that survived all the attempts to remove the word "Olympics" from all printed materials.
