Joshua Gamson (born November 16, 1962) is an American scholar and author. A graduate of Swarthmore College and the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

, he served on the faculty of

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Sta ...

before becoming a professor of sociology at the

University of San Francisco The University of San Francisco (USF) is a private Jesuit university in San Francisco, California. The university's main campus is located on a setting between the Golden Gate Bridge and Golden Gate Park. The main campus is nicknamed "The Hil ...

. His work has appeared in ''

The Nation ''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper t ...

'', ''

The American Prospect ''The American Prospect'' is a daily online and bimonthly print American political and public policy magazine dedicated to American modern liberalism and progressivism. Based in Washington, D.C., ''The American Prospect'' says it "is devoted t ...

'', '' Newsday'', ''

Gender & Society ''Gender & Society'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal that covers research in the field of gender studies. The editor-in-chief is Jo Reger (Oakland University). It was established in 1987 and is currently published by SAGE Publications in associ ...

'', the ''

Journal of the History of Sexuality The ''Journal of the History of Sexuality'' is a peer-reviewed academic journal established in 1990 and published by the University of Texas Press. Indexing The ''Journal of the History of Sexuality'' is indexed and/or abstracted in '' America: ...

'', and '' Sociological Inquiry''. He is the son of sociologists

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

and Zelda F. Gamson. Gamson received the 2006

Stonewall Book Award The Stonewall Book Award is a set of three literary awards that annually recognize "exceptional merit relating to the gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender experience" in English-language books published in the U.S. They are sponsored by the Rainbow ...

for nonfiction for ''The Fabulous Sylvester'', his biography of disco singer and activist Sylvester, which was also shortlisted for the 2005

Lambda Literary Awards Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary Foundation, Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature. ...

. In a mostly positive review for ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...

'', Robert Christgau lamented the gaps in Gamson's knowledge of music history, but praised his "details and insights" into Sylvester's life. '' Kirkus Reviews'' called the book "worshipful, occasionally overenthusiastic, yet engaging and sometimes surprisingly insightful." He was a 2009

Guggenheim Fellow Guggenheim Fellowships are grants that have been awarded annually since by the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation to those "who have demonstrated exceptional capacity for productive scholarship or exceptional creative ability in the a ...

and received a Placek Award from the

American Psychological Association The American Psychological Association (APA) is the largest scientific and professional organization of psychologists in the United States, with over 133,000 members, including scientists, educators, clinicians, consultants, and students. It ha ...

in 1995.

Bibliography

*''Claims to Fame: Celebrity in Contemporary America'' (1994) *''Freaks Talk Back: Tabloid Talk Shows and Sexual Nonconformity'' (1998) *''The Fabulous Sylvester: The Legend, The Music, The Seventies in San Francisco'' (2005) * ''Modern Families: Stories of Extraordinary Journeys to Kinship'' (2015)

References

External links

Profile at the Guggenheim Foundationwww.joshuagamson.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gamson, Joshua American sociologists American non-fiction writers American LGBT writers Living people 1962 births Swarthmore College alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni Yale University faculty Stonewall Book Award winners