The early 1970s were a pivotal moment for LGBTQ+ communities, remembered for the rise of an outspoken political movement fighting for gay and lesbian rights. Yet, as humanities scholar Lucas Hilderbrand highlights, not all cultural developments of the time were defined by activism and seriousness. Magazines like QQ (originally Queen’s Quarterly) and its travel-focused spin-off, Ciao!, offered a lighter, yet still influential, contribution to queer culture.

Launched in 1969 with the bold slogan “For Gay Guys Who Have No Hangups,” QQ was a glossy consumer magazine featuring content on food, health, fashion, and explicit subjects. Articles bore titles such as ‘What Not to Wear to an Orgy’ and ‘Glory Holes: A Piece of Vanishing Americana’. QQ focused on leisure and pleasure.

By 1973, Ciao! expanded this formula into the travel realm, offering guides to gay bars, restaurants, and cruising spots across various cities and countries. The magazine mixed practical advice about nightlife scenes with provocative nude photo spreads featuring models identified only by nationality.

However, the publication had also been under criticism in its time – while appealing to the affluent, jet-setting gay man, Ciao! also perpetuated fetishised portrayals, spotlighting encounters with men of colour abroad while largely ignoring queer spaces serving men of colour within the United States.

These publications reflected broader cultural trends in the 1970s, where lifestyle media promoted consumption as a form of self-expression. For LGBTQ+ readers, magazines like QQ and Ciao! served a dual role: they celebrated individuality while helping readers define and embody what it meant to ‘be gay’.

 

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Lesbians, too, found ways to connect through print media. Founded in 1974, Lesbian Connection—affectionately known as LC or Elsie—has been a cornerstone of queer women’s communication for half a century. Emerging from a 1973 cross-country road trip where Michigan taxi driver Margy Lesher and her girlfriend sought out lesbian communities, LC began as a grassroots, reader-written newsletter. Long before the digital age, the magazine provided personal stories, advice columns, and community updates, fostering bonds and serving as a rallying point for women-loving women worldwide.

While the 1969 Stonewall uprising remains a celebrated catalyst for modern LGBTQ+ activism, magazines like QQ, Ciao!, and Lesbian Connection offer insight into the emotional, humorous, and pleasurable dimensions of queer life during this transformative era.