Him (lost gay pornographic Jesus film; 1974): Difference between revisions

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[[File:Gonwill.jpg|thumb|225px|Gustav Von Will (aka Tava) portraying Jesus in ''Him''.]]
{{NSFW|pornographic subject matter/visuals}}
'''''Him '''''is a 1974 movie loosely referencing the life of Jesus Christ that heavily features hardcore gay pornography. It was confirmed as being played at the 55th Street Playhouse, New York (a theatre specialising in hardcore gay films) from 27 March to 23 May 1974.
{{InfoboxLost
|title=<center>Him</center>
|image=Him1974-GustavVonWill.jpg
|imagecaption=Gustav Von Will portraying Jesus in ''Him''.
|status=<span style="color:red;">'''Lost'''</span>
}}
'''''Him''''' is a 1974 movie that loosely references the life of Jesus Christ with homosexual pornographic content. The film's protagonist is a man with an erotic obsession with Christ.  


Despite the name and implication, the film's central character is not Christ himself, but rather a man that has an erotic obsession with Christ. It first received mainstream attention in 1980, when it was featured in the book ''The Golden Turkey Awards'', for which it won "Most Unerotic Concept in Pornography". On the very next page of the book was the quote "Over 425 actual films are described in this book, but one is a complete hoax. Can you find it?", leading many to believe that ''Him ''was a hoax, and in fact nonexistent. However, it was soon discovered that the fake film in the book was ''Dog of Norway'' (which featured a "screenshot" that was in fact a photo of one of the editor's pets), and not ''Him''.
It first received mainstream attention in 1980, when it was featured in the book ''The Golden Turkey Awards'', for which it won "Most Unerotic Concept in Pornography". The next page claimed one film written about didn't exist, leading many to believe that ''Him'' was a fictitious film. However, it was soon discovered that the fake film in the book was ''Dog of Norway''.


Several fragments relating to the movie have been uncovered, such as a few advertisements and reviews, as found through online newspaper archives. Additionally, the identity of the late actor portraying Jesus was uncovered in a blog post,<ref>[http://obscurityandbeyond.blogspot.com/2010/02/lost-movie-detective-him-1974.html ''Him'' page on obscurityandbeyond.blogspot.com, the blog that received correspondence from Vinny Parrillo.] Retrieved 26 Feb '13.</ref> (thanks to correspondence from his former partner Vinny Parrillo), that being of New York muralist Gustav Von Will (aka Tava). A photo of Von Will dressed as Jesus for the film was also provided to the blogspot page by Parillo.
Several fragments relating to the movie have resurfaced, including a few advertisements and reviews from online newspaper archives. Additionally, the identity of the late actor portraying Jesus was uncovered as Gustav Von Will (aka "Tava") in a blog post,<ref>[http://obscurityandbeyond.blogspot.com/2010/02/lost-movie-detective-him-1974.html ''Him'' page on obscurityandbeyond.blogspot.com, the blog that received correspondence from Vinny Parrillo.] Retrieved 26 Feb '13</ref> thanks to correspondence from his former partner, Vinny Parrillo.


Although the film's existence has been undeniably proven, no actual footage has ever been seen since 1974. It was possibly banned due to its sacreligous concept.
It was screened at the 55th Street Playhouse in New York from March 27th, to May 23rd, 1974. It returned to the Playhouse on December 6th, 1974, and January 1976. The film also played at the Bijou Theatre in Chicago, The Sansom Cinema in Philadelphia, Nob Hill Theatre in San Fransisco, the Gay Paree theatre in Atlanta, the Wood Six 1 in Highland Park, David Theater in New York, the Penthouse II Theatre in Pittsburgh, and the Adonis theatre in New York.<ref>[https://drive.google.com/file/d/1xfEaBakR597j3f3zbsS1k8Y7vD5Ur9XA/view An extensive essay on the film.] Retrieved 12 Mar '17</ref> No footage has resurfaced in any form since.


==Advertisements and reviews==
==Gallery==
<gallery mode=packed heights=175px>
<gallery mode=packed heights=150px>
File:HIMad1.jpg|Newspaper ad for ''Him'' 1/4.
Him1974-28Mar74.jpg|Newspaper ad for ''Him'' from March 28th, 1974.
File:HIMAd2.jpg|Newspaper ad for ''Him'' 2/4.
Him1974-11Apr74.jpg|Newspaper ad for ''Him'' from April 11th, 1974.
File:Himad3.jpg|Newspaper ad for ''Him'' 3/4.
Him1974-25Apr74.jpg|Newspaper ad for ''Him'' from April 25th, 1974.
File:HIMad4.jpg|Newspaper ad for ''Him'' 4/4.
Him1974-16May74.jpg|Newspaper ad for ''Him'' from May 16th, 1974.
File:Him review.jpg|Newspaper review for ''Him''.
Him1974-TipmoreReview.jpg|Newspaper review for ''Him''.
Him1974-02Dec74.png|Ad from December 2nd, 1974.
Him1974-31Jan75.png|Ad from the Chicago Tribune, dated January 31st, 1975.
Him1974-05Feb75.jpg|February 5th, 1975.
Him1974-09Feb75.jpg|San Fransisco Examiner, February 9th, 1975.
Him1974-11Feb75.jpg|February 11th, 1975.
Him1974-17Feb75.jpg|Philadelphia Daily News, February 17th, 1975.
Him1974-20Feb75.jpg|February 20th, 1975.
Him1974-21Feb75.jpg|February 21st, 1975.
Him1974-17Mar75.jpg|Atlanta Constitution, March 17th, 1975.
Him1974-30Mar75.jpg|March 30th, 1975.
Him1974-16Apr75.jpg|Detroit Free Press, April 16th, 1975.
Him1974-28Apr75.png|Ad from April 28th, 1975.
Him1974-21May75.png|Ad from May 21st, 1975.
Him1974-12Jan76.png|Ad from January 12th, 1976.
</gallery>
</gallery>
==References==
{{reflist}}


==References==
[[Category:Lost films]]
<references/>
[[Category:Completely lost media]]

Revision as of 14:54, 8 May 2020

Nsfw.png


This article has been tagged as NSFW due to its pornographic subject matter/visuals.



Him1974-GustavVonWill.jpg

Gustav Von Will portraying Jesus in Him.

Status: Lost

Him is a 1974 movie that loosely references the life of Jesus Christ with homosexual pornographic content. The film's protagonist is a man with an erotic obsession with Christ.

It first received mainstream attention in 1980, when it was featured in the book The Golden Turkey Awards, for which it won "Most Unerotic Concept in Pornography". The next page claimed one film written about didn't exist, leading many to believe that Him was a fictitious film. However, it was soon discovered that the fake film in the book was Dog of Norway.

Several fragments relating to the movie have resurfaced, including a few advertisements and reviews from online newspaper archives. Additionally, the identity of the late actor portraying Jesus was uncovered as Gustav Von Will (aka "Tava") in a blog post,[1] thanks to correspondence from his former partner, Vinny Parrillo.

It was screened at the 55th Street Playhouse in New York from March 27th, to May 23rd, 1974. It returned to the Playhouse on December 6th, 1974, and January 1976. The film also played at the Bijou Theatre in Chicago, The Sansom Cinema in Philadelphia, Nob Hill Theatre in San Fransisco, the Gay Paree theatre in Atlanta, the Wood Six 1 in Highland Park, David Theater in New York, the Penthouse II Theatre in Pittsburgh, and the Adonis theatre in New York.[2] No footage has resurfaced in any form since.

Gallery

References