Shaking the Closet: Analyzing Johnny Mathis's Sexual Elusiveness, 1956–82

Abstract

In 1982 Johnny Mathis inadvertently revealed his homosexuality during what he thought was an off-the-record interview. The notion that Mathis was sexually “closeted” is insufficient for understanding his career. Mathis, who debuted in 1956, authored a sexually elusive persona that relied strategically on a non-threatening sexual image to curb the “threat” he posed to white audiences. He also conveyed an ambiguous sexual romanticism with room for heterosexual and homosexual audiences to project their desires onto him without having to engage with his sexuality. Analyzing press coverage and various career documents reveals how sexual elusiveness was central to his commercial allure.

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