Junior Durkin (July 2, 1915 – May 4, 1935)

Junior Durkin (July 2, 1915 – May 4, 1935) was an American stage and film actor.

Born Trent Bernard Durkin in New York City, Durkin began his acting career in theater while a child. He entered films in 1930, playing the role of Huckleberry Finn in Tom Sawyer (1930), and Huckleberry Finn (1931). Under contract with RKO Radio Pictures he was cast in a series of “B” films in comedic roles that capitalized on his gangly appearance. He achieved another success in Hell's House (1932) co-starring then newcomer Bette Davis.

RKO began grooming him for a transition into more adult roles, and in his final film Chasing Yesterday (1935), he was billed as Trent Durkin.

In 1935 he was traveling with his friend, actor Jackie Coogan, and three other people, including Coogan's father and producer Robert J. Horner, when their vehicle was involved in a road accident in San Diego, California. Jackie Coogan was the only survivor of the accident. Durkin was living with agent Henry Willson at the time of his death. The two reportedly were lovers.

Durkin was interred in the Forest Lawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Glendale, California.

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junior_Durkin

( Further Readings )

More LGBT History at my website: www.elisarolle.com/, My Ramblings/Gay Classics

2014 Rainbow Awards Submission: Secret Lies

Lesbian Young Adult
Secret Lies by Amy Dunne
Paperback: 288 pages
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books (December 10, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1602829705
ISBN-13: 978-1602829701
Amazon: Secret Lies
Amazon Kindle: Secret Lies

Would you face your biggest fear, to save the one you love?

Nicola Jackson escapes from her abuser, only to realize she has no one to turn to and nowhere to go. In a twist of fate, she accidentally bumps into Jenny O’Connor, the most popular girl at school. They strike up an unlikely friendship. As their trust in each other develops, they share their darkest secrets, and their relationship blossoms into a secret romance.

Jenny loves Nicola, but she is fearful that if their secret relationship is discovered, she might lose her family, friends, and her seemingly perfect life.
Nicola confronts her abuser and blackmails him to leave for good, but things go terrifyingly wrong. Jenny is left with a life-changing dilemma: should she face her fear and accept who she is, or let Nicola take the blame and pretend their relationship never happened?

Charities Donation program progress:
25$ PFLAG: community.pflag.org/
25$ Unicef: www.unicef.org/
25$ Inland Northwest LGBT Center: www.thelgbtcenter.org/
25$ Lancaster LGBT Center: http://www.centralpalgbtcenter.org/
25$ Odyssey Youth Center: www.odysseyyouth.org/
25$ YouthCare: www.youthcare.org/
25$ No Kid Hungry: www.nokidhungry.org/
25$ The Trevor Project: www.thetrevorproject.org/
30$ Covenant: www.covenanthouseno.org/
50$ Wes for Youth: wesforyouth.privacemail.com/
50$ Lambert House: www.lamberthouse.org/
50$ Ruth Ellis Center: http://www.ruthelliscenter.org/
75$ Point Foundation: www.pointfoundation.org/
75$ CARE: careprogram.org/
110$ Lambda Legal: www.lambdalegal.org/
157$ Lost-n-Found Youth: www.lost-n-found.org/
160$ UCAN: www.ucanchicago.org/
175$ Cancer Research Institute: www.cancerresearch.org/
225$ Galop: www.galop.org.uk/
233$ COLORS: www.colorsyouth.org/
360$ Other Funds
400$ SAGE: giveto.sageusa.org/
510$ Ali Forney Center: www.aliforneycenter.org/
TOTAL: 2860$*

* more than 150$ is a direct donation from a supporter of the Rainbow Awards who isn't submitting; while some authors were more than generous, arriving to donate 5 times the suggested amount, being the submission fee a non mandatory and voluntary direct donation, we were struggling to raise the same amount as last year and there is who decided to cover part of it. I thank you for all you are doing, and if you wish to donate to the above links, please drop me a note with your donation and I will update the total.

2014 Rainbow Awards Guidelines: reviews-and-ramblings.dreamwidth.org/4162490.html

GayRomLit Retreat: J.P. Barnaby

Starting from March up until September I will feature authors attending the GayRomLit Retreat in Chicago (October 16-19, 2014: http://gayromlit.com/grl-authors).

Today author is J.P. Barnaby: Award winning romance novelist, J. P. Barnaby has penned over a dozen books including the Little Boy Lost series, Aaron, and In the Absence of Monsters. As a bisexual woman, J.P. is a proud member of the GLBT community both online and in her small town on the outskirts of Chicago. A member of Mensa, she is described as brilliant but troubled, sweet but introverted, and talented but deviant. She spends her days writing software and her nights writing erotica, which is, of course, far more interesting. The spare time that she carves out between her career and her novels is spent reading about the concept of love, which, like some of her characters, she has never quite figured out for herself. #Survival #Realism #Love
Website: http://www.JPBarnaby.com

J.P. Barnaby is offering a copy of In the Absence of Monsters to one commenter on this blog. You can comment on LJ or DW if you have an account (I will send a PM to the winner), if you don't have an account, please leave a comment on DW with a contact email.

In the Absence of Monsters by JP Barnaby
Paperback: 412 pages
Publisher: Wilde City Press, LLC (January 22, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1925031861
ISBN-13: 978-1925031867
Amazon: In the Absence of Monsters
Amazon Kindle: In the Absence of Monsters

Jayden Carter knew the path he wanted his life to take. He wanted to get his Master's Degree in History and teach. But when he answered an ad for a roommate and met mysterious doctor, Ethan Bryant, he's brought into a world he never knew existed and his path changes. It changes again for Jayden and he leaves Ethan with their friend, Lexi, in tow. Ethan loses himself in a haze of self-destruction and pain. With the help of a childhood friend, Gabriel, Ethan battles the demons of his childhood and finds a way to survive. Gabriel and Jayden wage an epic war for Ethan, but in the end, they may all end up losing. Originally published as The Forbidden Room and A House of Cards: Deconstructing Ethan