The first time I saw the movie “The Naked Civil Servant”, a film version of Quentin Crisp’s life was in the early 1980’s.
Forever a lover of off beat movies and the unusual theatrics my friends and I would gather at small movie theaters to watch foreign movies or new releases. Most would never make it to mainstream cinema. Bored by the formula movies Hollywood produced I welcomed a more worldly perspective on acting and cinematography.
To say that I was shocked by Quentin Crisp in “The Naked Civil Servant” would be an understatement. In fact I was horrified! The extent of my knowledge of homosexuality was so limited at the time. Looking back on it now he was clearly one of the bravest men in England and beyond.
As a child he didn’t understand why he was so different from the other children. Dressing up in his mother’s attire and posing in front of a large mirror. Later as he grew to know himself as a young man he was rejected by his family and most of society for his overtly feminine appearance.
He was a very effeminate man who made no pretense about being anything but himself. This didn’t go over very well with most men. Still he held his head high knowing that he would never be anything like those big burly men who physically attacked him beating him up for his appearance. The cruelty of humans because they fear what they don’t understand is immeasurable.
At some point he met other men of like mind who went to clubs dressed in even more feminine attire daring to embellish their looks with make-up and jewelry. Surprisingly, more than one man was attracted to him and he endured several long term relationships with men who would welcome bedding him, but were too embarrassed to be seen with Quentin publicly. He would not be shamed into being the man pushed back into the closet.
Fiercely independent, Quentin would have his occasional trist, always looking for his tall dark and handsome man that never appeared.
How did he support himself? He had no skills and no inheritance leaving him to his own creativity. Though his body was more like a pasty underdeveloped teenage boy, he found steady work as a nude model in an artists college. He was able to make enough money to maintain his lifestyle and entertain friends.
Arrested for petty crimes cooked up by the police. Quentin was no stranger to the dangers of society. Bravely he went on to become a hero to many young people were also homosexual. He unknowingly paved the way for all those that came after him.
At some point he decided to enter the theatre. Years later I ran across a flier announcing he was hosting a staged monologue at a small venue where he would answer questions from the audience. I couldn’t resist the temptation to see this courageous character so I parked myself in a front row seat to be as close to him as possible.
In reality it wasn’t much of a question and answer type of performance , but more of a soliloquy about his life. He was a fascinating person and I was in awe of his ability to perform and just be himself. He made no apologies for his appearance or his lifestyle.
Even into his late seventies he approached his audience with dignity and pride never regretting his choices in life. In fact he was true to himself walking with integrity never betraying who he was or how he lived something few people today can claim.
Denis Charles Pratt aka Quentin Crisp
25 December 1908 to 21 November 1999
Quentin Crisp during a Q&A session 1996, Ross Lewis