Winston Alias Papers

Provenance

The collection was given to the Archive by Glenn Liner after he cleaned out his friend’s apartment.

Scope and Content

The collection provides a look at gay life in the late 1950s and early 1960s in the United States. The collection contains Winston Alias’s correspondence with friends, family and his partner, most of which date to his time serving in the army. References are made in some of the correspondence to gay culture of the time and the presence of homosexuality in the armed forces. There is also more general discussion on the culture of New York City during this time period.

Additionally, the collection contains photographs that date to the time period of the correspondence and later. These were mostly gathered from personal photo albums. Some other miscellaneous documents (concert programs, school papers, army documents, etc.) are also included.

History or Bio

Winston Alias was trained as a dancer, studying at the Katherine Dunham School and working with the Ned Williams Group, Eartha Kitt and Carmen DeLavallade. He joined the army in the late 1950s, graduating from training at Fort Dix, New Jersey in August 1958. He was subsequently stationed with the 45th Artillery Brigade in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

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