69 things every gay man should know...
“Unzipped” was a gay adult interest magazine and website that featured photos of naked men, reviews of adult films and websites, and lifestyle content catered to a gay male audience. While I was never an avid reader of either, I did end up with a couple of issues of the print magazine when I purchased bundles of back issues of adult magazines, which I did a couple of times in college.
Honestly, I don’t know why I bought the magazines. My laptop and internet connection satisfied my need for adult content. But I guess, in my young mind, I thought these magazines had some kind of secret knowledge about gay life that I needed to know as a young (at the time) gay male.
As it turns out, I was kind of right. The magazine and website ended up folding sometime when I was in my mid 20s — when I had outgrown my desire to conform to a lifestyle sold to me by magazines (though social media would take their place, haha) and magazines (especially porno mags) in general were beginning to outlive their usefulness in the era of smartphones (and PornHub).
But when I revisited Unzipped.net via the Wayback Machine out of nostalgia and a desire to seek out retro internet clip art for this website (which you will find sprinkled throughout these pages), I stumbled across a series of articles, “69 Things Every Gay Man Should Know…” which listed tips and advice for dating, having sex and living life as a gay man.
I was surprised to find that, rather than listing strict rules gay men should follow to attain worth and value in a subculture that is notoriously often toxic, judgmental, and preoccupied with youth, vanity and status, there was instead a wealth of practical advice for how to navigate some of the unique aspects of gay life. There were even a few items that encouraged the reader to develop a sense of self-worth and individual identity in the face of such cruelty and conformity.
Though there are some parts of these articles that don’t quite hold up, I actually feel like most of the advice has stood the test of time. Honestly, more people (gay or otherwise) might benefit from applying some of these tips to their own lives. I’m sharing some of my favorite articles here in hopes that they might at least entertain you, but you might be surprised as I was to find yourself learning a few things. I plan to utilize some of the tips from the “looking good” article myself — I need to refresh my look after quarantine life haha.
I might also update these sometime with commentary on some of the tips, but for now, they’re presented as they were on Unzipped.net.
Please note, some of these articles contain adult/NSFW language and themes.
69 things every gay man should know about…
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