that image is everything. You have to sell the same thing everyone else has, but make it look fabulous. They've been loyal to me. I had a strong position within the agency. The trick was not to care. You couldn't pay attention to people telling you that you had no talent, that you were terrible, etcetera. In 1976, I launched Jontue, a floral green fragrance for women. We had commercials in Europe with a girl running. Sensual but not too far from innocence—that type of thing. The fragrance has its own fan club on YouTube. CM: Did you ever get bored with it? DL: I worked in advertising, as an outside supplier, until I was 65, which was very rare. I was International Creative Director for Loreal. If things backed up on you, you were dead. I was also a television director in Paris during that time, and I managed the Robert Joffrey ballet company in New York as well. Advertising is in a bad way right now, you never know if people are watching. CM: Speaking of watching, how is your sex life right now? DL: Excellent. My lover is a lot younger than I am. He’s in South America—I call him Mr. Buenos Aires. We're very involved, interdependent. In your 80’s you don't have to plan for the future—romance, love, etcetera. I’ve always lived for romance, never interested in domesticity. I don't want to sit around with some guy who's bored with me. CM: But what about marriage equality?
CM: You were a seaman. So was Gore Vidal— another writer in his 80s. DL: I actually read his book, Williwaw, when I was in the Navy. Vidal's greatest characteristic is he's not terribly concerned with what other people think of him. And that's a good thing. Being concerned with what other people think of you is very 20th century. The idea is shifting, and a lot of it has to do with young people. One example is that the attitude toward gay people has evolved. I never cared. CM: At one point you were Global Director of Revlon’s worldwide advertising. DL: My advertising career—I started when I was 28—took place in the advertising age, during Madmen times. Revlon was always on the yearly 10 worst clients list. So much yelling and carrying on. But they always spent money. They were the class of the mass, early to understand
DL: I myself am not interested in gay marriage because I' never wanted to be married. You're involved with someone you don't care about, which makes it impossible to meet someone you might care about. Most heterosexual marriages look awful. I look at a lot of gay marriages and I don't think they're sleeping together. It's wonderful for the kids, but if you're not sexually involved with your partner then why the hell are you there?
For a mish-mash of sex advice, fashion and pop culture commentary, visit David's Gay Dish at http://davidsgaydish.blogspot.com/.
C.Antonio writes about social movements and social media. Contact him at CAntonioWrites@gmail.com
photos courtesy David Vance
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