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My parents' secret gay porn empire

Rachel and Josh Mason grew up believing their straight-laced parents ran a small bookstore in LA. They had no idea it was one of the biggest distributors of gay porn in the USA.

Growing up in California, Rachel Mason and her brother Josh didn't know exactly what was sold in their unassuming and straight-laced parents' bookstore. They had no idea the bookshop was actually one of the biggest distributors of adult material, specifically gay porn, in the US. The bookshop became a haven for the queer community as Karen and Barry supported gay employees throughout the HIV and Aids crisis in the 1980s, all the while hiding the business from family and friends. Rachel, Josh and Karen spoke to Outlook鈥檚 Emily Webb. Rachel has made a documentary about their story called Circus of Books.

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Picture: Barry and Karen at Circus of Books
Credit: Rachel Mason

Available now

53 minutes

Last on

Thu 21 Nov 2019 04:06GMT

Broadcasts

  • Wed 20 Nov 2019 12:06GMT
  • Wed 20 Nov 2019 16:06GMT
  • Wed 20 Nov 2019 18:06GMT
  • Wed 20 Nov 2019 21:06GMT
  • Wed 20 Nov 2019 23:06GMT
  • Thu 21 Nov 2019 03:06GMT
  • Thu 21 Nov 2019 04:06GMT

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Podcast: Lives Less Ordinary

Podcast: Lives Less Ordinary

Step into someone else鈥檚 life and expect the unexpected