Stu Maddux's simple but utterly charming documentary, Bob and Jack's 52-Year Adventure, chronicles the half-century-plus romance between gay life partners Jack Reavley and Bob Claunch. Bob and Jack are endearing, humorous and engaging, and the longevity of their partnership generates a feeling of warm reassurance about the possibility of lifelong love. Anybody in a relationship, gay or straight, will see something of themselves in these two lovely and still in-love men.

Bob and Jack's 52-Year Adventure is currently making the rounds at several LGBT film festivals, and it recently won the Audience Award for Best Feature at the 17th annual Fresno Reel Pride gay and lesbian film festival.

It was Bob Claunch's memoir that prompted Maddux to produce the documentary — his first independent film — about the two men. “He came to us and asked us, and we said ‘Why not?'” Bob says. “I think he did a pretty damn good job.” The documentary was three years in the making, and the couple will celebrate their 55th anniversary in December this year.

The documentary recounts how Bob and Jack first met in 1951 as soldiers stationed together in postwar Munich, Germany; how they left wives and children after returning to the United States; and how they forged a life together at a time when homosexual unions were virtually unheard of. We learn of their professional ventures in radio broadcasting and film acting, and ultimately of their shared struggles in life as they both reach their 80s.

Interviews with Bob and Jack are interspersed with photos and film footage from old family photo albums and their home movie collection. Photos from the early 1950s of Bob and Jack as U.S. military personnel in Germany are particularly interesting. The images help give a face to the often sketchy history of gay soldiers in World War II.

At first, neither Bob nor Jack thought there would be much interest in their story, especially in today's youth-oriented gay culture. But they've been pleasantly surprised at the interest and positive reactions generated at each screening, especially from younger gays.

“The thing that impresses us is that we didn't expect a lot of applause from people,” Bob says. “In fact, we didn't expect any. You know how gay people have been thought of over the years. So we didn't know what to expect. But at our recent Los Angeles premiere, we couldn't believe it. When the house lights came up, everyone stood up! We were elated and overwhelmed. So many in the audience came up to compliment us after the showing.”

Bob says that they have noticed that young people are particularly interested in the difficulties that gay people faced in the 1950s. “Young gays haven't been told that much about it,” he says. “When we were young, it was nothing like today. We did not know where to go … with whom to talk, except for our priests — and what did they tell us? That we were all going to hell, and that's all there was to it. You really couldn't take anyone into your confidence. But now there is such freedom. It's beautiful.”

Yet even in pre-Stonewall times, Bob and Jack found each other and fell in love. “In the 1950s,” Jack observes, “particularly in the service and in military life, we knew pretty much who was gay and who wasn't. I don't know how we knew but we did, and that's the way it was. Even in nonmilitary life back in the '50s it was pretty much the same: You knew who was and who wasn't [gay] from their actions.”

The release of 52-Year Adventure is proving to be a learning experience for the two octogenarian life partners. “It has given us the impetus to go forward with the political side of it,” Bob admits. “We didn't have much background. Stu has given us material on Don't Ask, Don't Tell. We know what it is. We don't mind mentioning it and going forward with it.”

As is common with members of the older, pre-sexual liberation generation, Bob and Jack wish to retain some of the private aspects of their partnership. Many of the recent developments in gay life are new to them, and they are cautious about politicizing the personal aspects of their relationship. “We don't want to set up ourselves as political activists in the gay movement,” Bob says.

“We are not activists of any sort at all,” Jack explains. “However, we are happy to tell people about our relationship. I don't have the personality for getting out and waving the so-called rainbow flag and stuff like that. Maybe we are remiss because of that. But that's the type of people we are.”

The couple remains somewhat conflicted regarding the very public, out sensibilities that characterize modern gay life in America. Yet they are keen to make use of the significant benefits afforded to gays by new civil rights protections, rulings and laws.

“We do take advantage of new domestic partnership laws,” says Bob. “We were one of the first here in Los Angeles to sign up for it. We want as much as we can possibly get — and of course we want more.”

The two men, however, are ambivalent about gay marriage. “We want it [legalization] for same-sex marriage,” Bob clarifies. “But we've never cared about being open about marrying one another. We don't do that publicly.”

Jack chimes in: “It's fine if other gays do want to stand up in front of the altar and say their “I do's,” but we are not that type of person — neither one of us.”

Page 1 / 2 - Next