Way before the L-Word, LA was already home to an elite group of famous and infamous lesbian actresses. Who’s gay in Hollywood? Well, these included some of the most well-known actresses at the time. Collectively, they fondly referred to themselves as “Sewing Circles”, to serve as a sort of code, and would meet frequently in private lesbian parties.

The 1930s-1960s was particularly harsh to gay celebrities. The studios adopted the Hays Code (also known as the Production Code) which introduced a strict moral law to the movie industry. Among others, it forbade references to alleged “sex perversions” such as homosexuality. Worse, this code was not limited to film productions, but delved into the personal lives of movie actors and other studio workers as well. A lot of the stars were forced into “lavender marriages”, or marriages of convenience, just to appear heterosexual and avoid being publicly exposed. However, these sham marriages didn’t stop some of them from continuing their exploits in secret.

Some of those believed to be included in the the Sewing Circles are:

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