CARTOON CLOSET: AFTER DARK - ANIMATION'S UNTOLD QUEER & ADULT HISTORY - Sky Room Talk Lecture

Name: CARTOON CLOSET: AFTER DARK - ANIMATION'S UNTOLD QUEER & ADULT HISTORY - Sky Room Talk Lecture
Start: 2025-08-20T20:00:00-04:00
Location: Cinema Arts Centre

Schedule

Wed, 20 Aug, 2025 at 08:00 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

Cinema Arts Centre | Huntington, NY

Sky Room Talk Lecture
CARTOON CLOSET: AFTER DARK - ANIMATION'S UNTOLD QUEER & ADULT HISTORY
Wednesday, August 20th at 8 PM
$18 Public | $12 Members
Hosted by queer animation archivist, historian and Cartoon Research contributor Esther Bley
This is an 18+ only event.
Beginning with X-rated cartoons in the 1920s, the boom of adult animation in the 1970s, and the politically incorrect 1990s - this program delivers uncensored and uncut shorts and clips produced throughout the 20th century. Dive into the queerer side of the sleazy and graphically perverse world of adult, American animation with queer animation historian and Cartoon Research contributor Esther Bley. From Ralph Bakshi's infamous "Fritz the Cat" to lesser-known works, discover some of animation's most boundary-pushing and taboo creations.
Please be advised that this film lecture series includes the discussion and analysis of content that some may find disturbing, triggering, or offensive. Only adults 18 and over will be admitted.
Esther Bley is an archivist, historian, researcher, and a reference librarian at Hofstra University. Their online archive, Queer Animation, documents and preserves LGBTQ+ media throughout animation history. When not working on their database, they dedicate their time to writing. She contributes to her series, "The Cartoon Closet" for Cartoon Research, and her Substack, Queer Animation. Bley has conducted interviews with a variety of animation directors, including Ralph Bakshi, bringing important conversations about representation to the forefront. Currently, she is working on a book exploring queer representation in American animation.