Richard Thomas Nolan & Robert C. Pingpank

The Rev. Richard Thomas Nolan (born May 30, 1937, Waltham, MA; dual citizenship in the Republic of Ireland, 2011) is a canon of Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral in Hartford, Connecticut and a former college professor of philosophy and religious studies. While attending Trinity College (Connecticut) in 1955, Nolan met his life partner, Robert C. Pingpank. Throughout their lives, they were forced to hide their relationship due to the potential of losing their jobs. During a career change for both in 1967, the couple finally moved in together into a unique two-family house designed by Pingpank, so that they could live together, yet maintain separate addresses and phones. This allowed them to maintain their relationship while avoiding challenges to their careers; they lived in this home until their retirement in 1994, when they moved to Florida. The couple has been profiled in The LGBT Religious Archives Network, and the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry (a recently established center of the Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley, California). (

P: Richard T. Nolan / Polisena Photography. Photo of Richard T. Nolan taken in 2009)

Richard Nolan and Robert Pingpank were married legally at age 72 on June 4, 2009, in the Trinity College Chapel, Hartford, CT. Nolan and Pingpank reside in the John Knox Village (a continuing care retirement community), Pompano Beach, FL, and are active in Lambda Legal and Integrity Palm Beach.

Nolan is the editor/coauthor of The Diaconate Now (Corpus-World, 1968), and coauthor of Living Issues In Philosophy (Oxford University Press, 1995), Living Issues in Ethics (Wadsworth 1982 and iUniverse 2000), and Soul Mates: More than Partners (online, 2004). Nolan is also the editor of a non-commercial, educational website philosophy-religion.org. His books have been translated into several languages, including Indonesian and Chinese.


©John Ricksen Photography. Richard Thomas Nolan & Robert C. Pingpank and their dogs, 2005(©17)
The Rev. Richard Thomas Nolan is a canon of Christ Church Episcopal Cathedral in Hartford, Connecticut and a former college professor of philosophy and religious studies. While attending Trinity College (Connecticut) in 1955, Nolan met his life partner, Robert C. Pingpank. Throughout their lives, they were forced to hide their relationship due to the potential of losing their jobs. Richard and Robert were married legally at age 72 on June 4, 2009, in the Trinity College Chapel, Hartford, CT.

( Read more... )

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Thomas_Nolan

Days of Love: Celebrating LGBT History One Story at a Time by Elisa Rolle
Paperback: 760 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 1 edition (July 1, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1500563323
ISBN-13: 978-1500563325
Amazon: Days of Love: Celebrating LGBT History One Story at a Time

Days of Love chronicles more than 700 LGBT couples throughout history, spanning 2000 years from Alexander the Great to the most recent winner of a Lambda Literary Award. Many of the contemporary couples share their stories on how they met and fell in love, as well as photos from when they married or of their families. Included are professional portraits by Robert Giard and Stathis Orphanos, paintings by John Singer Sargent and Giovanni Boldini, and photographs by Frances Benjamin Johnson, Arnold Genthe, and Carl Van Vechten among others. “It's wonderful. Laying it out chronologically is inspired, offering a solid GLBT history. I kept learning things. I love the decision to include couples broken by death. It makes clear how important love is, as well as showing what people have been through. The layout and photos look terrific.” Christopher Bram “I couldn’t resist clicking through every page. I never realized the scope of the book would cover centuries! I know that it will be hugely validating to young, newly-emerging LGBT kids and be reassured that they really can have a secure, respected place in the world as their futures unfold.” Howard Cruse “This international history-and-photo book, featuring 100s of detailed bios of some of the most forward-moving gay persons in history, is sure to be one of those bestsellers that gay folk will enjoy for years to come as reference and research that is filled with facts and fun.” Jack Fritscher

Jack D. Bloch & Max Gundy

Max Gundersheimer, Jr., was born in New York City on December 19, 1910, to Max and Alice Gundersheimer. Little is known of his early life. He served as the President of Beth Sholom Peoples Temple Young Folks League from 1929-1930. In the early-to-mid 1930s he met Jack D. Bloch, a fellow New Yorker. Bloch was born June 4, 1912, and held a series of jobs in a variety of occupations until 1942. He served with the U.S. Army in Europe from March 1942 to October 1945. During the late 1940s and early 1950s, Gundersheimer, who went by the name Max Gundy as early as 1944, became involved in the Communist party and other progressive causes; he became more actively involved after his retirement to Long Beach, California, in 1977.

In 1950, Bloch purchased a home in Eastchester, Westchester County, New York, in which the two lived. In 1953, Bloch joined Gundy's printing business as an assistant production person in direct mail advertising. The business was dissolved in 1970, and both men obtained other related positions. In 1977, they retired and relocated to Long Beach, California, where they purchased a condominium. Bloch volunteered helping other senior citizens while Gundy took a more active role in Communist, socialist, peace, and other progressive community organizations. He volunteered at the International Book Shop in Long Beach, of which he became the manager in the early 1980s. He also ran as the Peace and Freedom Party candidate for the 57th district of the California Assembly between 1980 and 1988.

Gundy and Bloch both died in 1996, within three months of each other, after more than 60 years together.

Source: http://www.oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt9489r9rw/

( Further Readings )

More Real Life Romances at my website: http://www.elisarolle.com/, My Ramblings/Real Life Romance

Euro Pride Con: Alex Gabriel

Starting from June 1, 2015, I will daily feature authors attending the three conventions I will join, Euro Pride in Munich (July), UK Meet in Bristol (September) and GRL in San Diego (October).

For the Euro Pride in Munich, July 11-12, 2015, today author is Alex Gabriel: "I am a writer. Mostly, I write gay romance – frequently with an element of the supernatural, fantastical or futuristic.

It all began when I learned to decipher the alphabet. I soon found that the world was full of wonderful stories – but not all of the tales I wanted to read were being told. In self-defence, I began to write, and haven’t stopped since.

In what little time my busy schedule of reading and writing has left me, I’ve worked as a copywriter, a translator, an English teacher, a linguistics tutor, an alibi S.O., a soap maker, a cloakroom attendant, a bartender, and other such things. Only the jobs that involve writing have stuck.

My primary focus is always on the characters. My goal is to create real, interesting and multi-faceted people and develop relationships that ring true… in the context of a world and a story that grab the reader and don’t let go.

I love fiction for its capacity to explore countless different worlds, ask thousands of different variations on what if.

What if time could flow backwards, what if we could travel to alternate universes, what if magic worked, what if gods and demons walked among us? What if telepathy and/or other such powers existed? What if stories were real, and reality just a fiction?

What if…?"

Further Readings:

Love for the Cold-Blooded, or The Part-Time Evil Minion's Guide to Accidentally Dating a Superhero by Alex Gabriel
Paperback: 300 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 1 edition (January 1, 2015)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1505695988
ISBN-13: 978-1505695984
Amazon: Love for the Cold-Blooded, or The Part-Time Evil Minion's Guide to Accidentally Dating a Superhero
Amazon Kindle: Love for the Cold-Blooded, or The Part-Time Evil Minion's Guide to Accidentally Dating a Superhero

Superheroes. Evil minions. And one hell of a conflict of interest. Being related to a supervillain isn’t a big deal to Pat West. So what if his mom occasionally tries to take over the world? All Pat wants is to finish university and become an urban designer. That he moonlights as an evil minion sometimes – that’s just a family tradition. Then Pat accidentally sleeps with superhero Silver Paladin, otherwise known as reclusive billionaire Nick Andersen. It’s a simple misunderstanding. Pat never means to impersonate a prostitute, honest. But soon Pat is in way over his head, and threatening to fall for the worst possible guy. When Pat’s mother returns to bring the world to its knees, Silver Paladin races to stop her… and all of Pat’s secrets threaten to blow up in his face. How can Pat reconcile being a minion with wanting a hero? Will Nick’s feelings for Pat overcome what keeps them apart? Or will they both lose everything?

UK Meet & Euro Pride Con & GRL: Amber Kell

Starting from June 1, 2015, I will daily feature authors attending the three conventions I will join, Euro Pride in Munich (July), UK Meet in Bristol (September) and GRL in San Diego (October).

For the UK Meet in Bristol, September 11-13, 2015, today author is Amber Kell (Amber Kell will also attend the Euro Pride Con in Munich and the GRL in San Diego): Amber Kell has made a career out of daydreaming. It has been a lifelong habit she practices diligently as shown by her complete lack of focus on anything not related to her fantasy world building.

When she told her husband what she wanted to do with her life he told her to go have fun.

During those seconds she isn't writing she remembers she has children who humor her with games of 'what if' and let her drag them to foreign lands to gather inspiration. Her youngest confided in her that he wants to write because he longs for a website and an author name—two things apparently necessary to be a proper writer.

Despite her husband's insistence she doesn't drink enough to be a true literary genius she continues to spin stories of people falling happily in love and staying that way.

She is thwarted during the day by a traffic jam of cats on the stairway and a puppy who insists on walks, but she bravely perseveres.

Further Readings:

Temple's Touch (A Wizard's Touch Book 6) by Amber Kell
Publisher: Totally Bound Publishing (April 23, 2015)
Amazon Kindle: Temple's Touch (A Wizard's Touch Book 6)

A Wizard's Touch series:

Wizards, shifters, dragons and gnomes work to circumvent monsters and evil in this series of paranormal mates. In this group of stories, lovers must use their supernatural abilities to overcome adversity against what they are and who they choose to love. Even the strongest wizard will need his mate to keep him alive, and the weakest man will find strength in the people around him.

Come visit the world of magic and find out how true love can only survive with A Wizard’s Touch…

Temple’s Touch by Amber Kell

Book six in the A Wizard's Touch series

Sometimes true love is right in front of you.

Madison Archer dreams of the day he can claim Temple as his mate. However, when Temple heads off to school Maddie worries he’ll be forgotten among Temple’s new friends. Maybe a half wolf can’t understand the bond between mates.

Temple Stewartson has always loved Madison Archer. Childhood friends, they were now old enough to start their own lives. However, Temple doesn’t want to leave the pack without Madison by his side. So when Maddie disappears, Temple is willing to do anything to get his man back.

& &

GRL: A.E. VIA

Starting from June 1, 2015, I will daily feature authors attending the three conventions I will join, Euro Pride in Munich (July), UK Meet in Bristol (September) and GRL in San Diego (October).

For the GRL in San Diego, October 15-18, 2015, today author is A.E. Via: A.E. Via is still a fairly new author in the beautiful gay erotic genre. Her writing embodies everything from spicy to scandalous. Her stories often include intriguing edges and twists that take readers to new, thought-provoking depths.

When she's not clicking away at her laptop, she devotes herself to her family--a husband and four children, her two pets, a Maltese dog and her white Siamese cat, ELynn, named after the late, great gay romance author E. Lynn Harris.

While she has just released her fifth novel, she has plenty more to come. So stalk her - she loves that - because the male on male action is just heating up!

Further Readings:

Defined By Deceit by A.E. Via
Paperback: 332 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 1 edition (March 23, 2015)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1511423781
ISBN-13: 978-1511423786
Amazon: Defined By Deceit
Amazon Kindle: Defined By Deceit

Life isn't always fair, and that’s something that Llewellyn Gardner knows about first hand. His life was on the fast track until one night of extreme passion changed everything. Now eight years later, he’s still living with the aftershocks of that night. Everywhere he turns or runs, there’s another reminder. What the hell do you do when you try to drown your demons only to find out they can swim? Shane Smith, Jr. owner of Smith Construction, could see the emotional turmoil within his new employee — it’s why he hired him. There was something about the gorgeous, misunderstood man with the overly expressive eyes that came to their small town with a past no one was willing to overlook. Shane could see the good in Llewellyn, and those eyes of his were a clear window to his soul. Shane wasn't going to let the man live a future of solitude because his past had been plagued with deceit. Llewellyn wasn’t sure what to think about Shane. After years of protecting himself from being tricked twice, he was now faced with worry again. What would happen to him if Shane didn’t believe his truth, and walked away? Llewellyn wasn’t sure he’d be able to survive being left alone. Again.