Phil Andros
Encyclopedia
Samuel Morris Steward also known by the pen name Phil Andros, was a novelist and tattoo artist
from Ohio
, later based in Oakland, California
.
and began attending Ohio State University
in Columbus
in 1927. He began teaching English at OSU as a university fellow in 1932 during the final year of his PhD and was given his first post as a university professor in 1934 at Carroll College
in Helena, Montana
. In 1936 he was dismissed from a position at the State College of Washington due to the portrayal of prostitution in his novel Angels on the Bough. He moved to Chicago, teaching at Loyola
until 1946 and then at DePaul University
. In 1952 he began tattooing in Chicago under the name Phil Sparrow partly because he did not want to jeopardize his teaching job at DePaul. He stopped teaching two years later to write and tattoo full time.
In 1932 he was taking college courses from Clarence Andrews, who had written a book which was the vehicle for Maurice Chevalier
's first American movie Innocents of Paris
(1929). Andrews spent half the year in Paris, where he visited Gertrude Stein
many times and then returned to teaching for six months in the U.S, where he told Steward about her. After Andrews died suddenly in 1932, Steward wrote to tell her of his death, and began a long correspondence and friendship with Stein. He visited Paris in 1937 and met her and Alice B. Toklas
with whom he corresponded for 20 years after Stein's death. He also met with many other literary figures such as Lord Alfred Douglas
(the lover of Oscar Wilde
), Thomas Mann
, and André Gide
.
He kept records of his many sexual encounters in a card-index he called his "Stud File". They included Rudolph Valentino
(a month before his death at 31, when Steward was 17); Douglas; Roy Fitzgerald (who became Rock Hudson
); and Thornton Wilder
. He kept a lock of what he claimed was Valentino's pubic hair in a monstrance
by his bedside for the rest of his life. Gide once loaned to him for an evening the beautiful young Arab boy that Gide had brought from North Africa to France. Steward's 1981 memoir Chapters from an Autobiography detailed these relationships, as well as other experiences. He also edited the book Dear Sammy: Letters from Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas (Houghton Mifflin, 1977), and wrote two "Gertrude Stein-Alice B. Toklas Mysteries" featuring the famous couple as detectives. Steward was introduced to Thornton Wilder
by Gertrude Stein
, who at the time regularly corresponded with the both of them. Wilder drafted the third act of Our Town
during a brief visit by Steward in Zurich
, their first meeting. They began a sexual friendship then that lasted 11 years.(Spring, p53)
Steward met famed sex researcher Alfred Kinsey
around 1949 and became an unofficial collaborator, helping Kinsey find new contacts. Kinsey encouraged him to keep more detailed reords of his encounters. In 1949, he participated in a BDSM
scene for Kinsey to film, with a sadist that Kinsey flew in from New York. He said Kinsey was "as approachable as a park bench" and described him as a liberating influence.
In the early 1950s he made pornographic drawings, many of them based on his own Polaroid
photographs. Some of his art was published in the trilingual Swiss homosexual journal Der Kreis (The Circle).
In the 1960s Steward began writing gay erotica under the name Phil Andros. His works dealt with rough trade
and sadomasochistic sex. Since the legality of gay erotica was still questionable, its authors and publishers had little recourse against piracy; Steward's own San Francisco Hustler was published without permission by Cameo Library as Gay in San Francisco by "Biff Thomas". The name Phil Andros, which he used both as a pen name and the name of his protagonist, comes from the Greek words for love and man.
As a tattooist — under the name Phil Sparrow — and man of letters he drew the attention of Cliff Ingram, aka Cliff Raven
, and from his Oakland studio, Don Ed Hardy. He mentored both into the profession. Cliff Raven became famous as a tattooist in Chicago, and by mentoring others, generated a line of noted tattooists (Dale Grande, Robert Benedetti, Bob Roberts, Pat Fish, and Thomas Raven among others).
Steward died aged 84 of chronic pulmonary disease in Berkeley, California
.
Tattoo artist
A tattoo artist is an individual who applies permanent decorative tattoos, often in an established business called a tattoo shop, tattoo studio or tattoo parlour...
from Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
, later based in Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
.
Biography
He was born in Woodsfield, OhioWoodsfield, Ohio
Woodsfield is a village in Monroe County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,598 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Monroe County and houses the Monroe County Courthouse.-Geography:Woodsfield is located at ....
and began attending Ohio State University
Ohio State University
The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State, is a public research university located in Columbus, Ohio. It was originally founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and is currently the third largest university campus in the United States...
in Columbus
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
in 1927. He began teaching English at OSU as a university fellow in 1932 during the final year of his PhD and was given his first post as a university professor in 1934 at Carroll College
Carroll College (Montana)
Carroll College is a private Catholic liberal arts college in Helena, Montana, USA. Carroll College has earned national and regional awards for its academic programs. Carroll's colors are purple and gold...
in Helena, Montana
Helena, Montana
Helena is the capital city of the U.S. state of Montana and the county seat of Lewis and Clark County. The 2010 census put the population at 28,180. The local daily newspaper is the Independent Record. The Helena Brewers minor league baseball and Helena Bighorns minor league hockey team call the...
. In 1936 he was dismissed from a position at the State College of Washington due to the portrayal of prostitution in his novel Angels on the Bough. He moved to Chicago, teaching at Loyola
Loyola University Chicago
Loyola University Chicago is a private Jesuit research university located in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Founded by the Society of Jesus in 1870 under the title St...
until 1946 and then at DePaul University
DePaul University
DePaul University is a private institution of higher education and research in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th century French priest Saint Vincent de Paul...
. In 1952 he began tattooing in Chicago under the name Phil Sparrow partly because he did not want to jeopardize his teaching job at DePaul. He stopped teaching two years later to write and tattoo full time.
In 1932 he was taking college courses from Clarence Andrews, who had written a book which was the vehicle for Maurice Chevalier
Maurice Chevalier
Maurice Auguste Chevalier was a French actor, singer, entertainer and a noted Sprechgesang performer. He is perhaps best known for his signature songs, including Louise, Mimi, Valentine, and Thank Heaven for Little Girls and for his films including The Love Parade and The Big Pond...
's first American movie Innocents of Paris
Innocents of Paris
Innocents of Paris is a 1929 black and white American musical film. Directed by Richard Wallace and is based on the play Flea Market, the film was the first musical production by Paramount Pictures.-Cast:*Maurice Chevalier - Maurice Marney...
(1929). Andrews spent half the year in Paris, where he visited Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was an American writer, poet and art collector who spent most of her life in France.-Early life:...
many times and then returned to teaching for six months in the U.S, where he told Steward about her. After Andrews died suddenly in 1932, Steward wrote to tell her of his death, and began a long correspondence and friendship with Stein. He visited Paris in 1937 and met her and Alice B. Toklas
Alice B. Toklas
Alice B. Toklas was an American-born member of the Parisian avant-garde of the early 20th century.-Early life, relationship with Gertrude Stein:...
with whom he corresponded for 20 years after Stein's death. He also met with many other literary figures such as Lord Alfred Douglas
Lord Alfred Douglas
Lord Alfred Bruce Douglas , nicknamed Bosie, was a British author, poet and translator, better known as the intimate friend and lover of the writer Oscar Wilde...
(the lover of Oscar Wilde
Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish writer and poet. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s...
), Thomas Mann
Thomas Mann
Thomas Mann was a German novelist, short story writer, social critic, philanthropist, essayist, and 1929 Nobel Prize laureate, known for his series of highly symbolic and ironic epic novels and novellas, noted for their insight into the psychology of the artist and the intellectual...
, and André Gide
André Gide
André Paul Guillaume Gide was a French author and winner of the Nobel Prize in literature in 1947. Gide's career ranged from its beginnings in the symbolist movement, to the advent of anticolonialism between the two World Wars.Known for his fiction as well as his autobiographical works, Gide...
.
He kept records of his many sexual encounters in a card-index he called his "Stud File". They included Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino
Rudolph Valentino was an Italian actor, and early pop icon. A sex symbol of the 1920s, Valentino was known as the "Latin Lover". He starred in several well-known silent films including The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, The Sheik, Blood and Sand, The Eagle and Son of the Sheik...
(a month before his death at 31, when Steward was 17); Douglas; Roy Fitzgerald (who became Rock Hudson
Rock Hudson
Roy Harold Scherer, Jr., later Roy Harold Fitzgerald , known professionally as Rock Hudson, was an American film and television actor, recognized as a romantic leading man during the 1950s and 1960s, most notably in several romantic comedies with Doris Day.Hudson was voted "Star of the Year",...
); and Thornton Wilder
Thornton Wilder
Thornton Niven Wilder was an American playwright and novelist. He received three Pulitzer Prizes, one for his novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and two for his plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth, and a National Book Award for his novel The Eighth Day.-Early years:Wilder was born in Madison,...
. He kept a lock of what he claimed was Valentino's pubic hair in a monstrance
Monstrance
A monstrance is the vessel used in the Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, and Anglican churches to display the consecrated Eucharistic host, during Eucharistic adoration or Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Created in the medieval period for the public display of relics, the monstrance today is...
by his bedside for the rest of his life. Gide once loaned to him for an evening the beautiful young Arab boy that Gide had brought from North Africa to France. Steward's 1981 memoir Chapters from an Autobiography detailed these relationships, as well as other experiences. He also edited the book Dear Sammy: Letters from Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas (Houghton Mifflin, 1977), and wrote two "Gertrude Stein-Alice B. Toklas Mysteries" featuring the famous couple as detectives. Steward was introduced to Thornton Wilder
Thornton Wilder
Thornton Niven Wilder was an American playwright and novelist. He received three Pulitzer Prizes, one for his novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and two for his plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth, and a National Book Award for his novel The Eighth Day.-Early years:Wilder was born in Madison,...
by Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein
Gertrude Stein was an American writer, poet and art collector who spent most of her life in France.-Early life:...
, who at the time regularly corresponded with the both of them. Wilder drafted the third act of Our Town
Our Town
Our Town is a three-act play by American playwright Thornton Wilder. It is a character story about an average town's citizens in the early twentieth century as depicted through their everyday lives...
during a brief visit by Steward in Zurich
Zürich
Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...
, their first meeting. They began a sexual friendship then that lasted 11 years.(Spring, p53)
Steward met famed sex researcher Alfred Kinsey
Alfred Kinsey
Alfred Charles Kinsey was an American biologist and professor of entomology and zoology, who in 1947 founded the Institute for Sex Research at Indiana University, now known as the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction, as well as producing the Kinsey Reports and the Kinsey...
around 1949 and became an unofficial collaborator, helping Kinsey find new contacts. Kinsey encouraged him to keep more detailed reords of his encounters. In 1949, he participated in a BDSM
BDSM
BDSM is an erotic preference and a form of sexual expression involving the consensual use of restraint, intense sensory stimulation, and fantasy power role-play. The compound acronym BDSM is derived from the terms bondage and discipline , dominance and submission , and sadism and masochism...
scene for Kinsey to film, with a sadist that Kinsey flew in from New York. He said Kinsey was "as approachable as a park bench" and described him as a liberating influence.
In the early 1950s he made pornographic drawings, many of them based on his own Polaroid
Polaroid Corporation
Polaroid Corporation is an American-based international consumer electronics and eyewear company, originally founded in 1937 by Edwin H. Land. It is most famous for its instant film cameras, which reached the market in 1948, and continued to be the company's flagship product line until the February...
photographs. Some of his art was published in the trilingual Swiss homosexual journal Der Kreis (The Circle).
In the 1960s Steward began writing gay erotica under the name Phil Andros. His works dealt with rough trade
Trade (Homosexual)
Trade is a gay slang term originating from Polari and refers to the casual partner of a gay man or to the genre of such partners...
and sadomasochistic sex. Since the legality of gay erotica was still questionable, its authors and publishers had little recourse against piracy; Steward's own San Francisco Hustler was published without permission by Cameo Library as Gay in San Francisco by "Biff Thomas". The name Phil Andros, which he used both as a pen name and the name of his protagonist, comes from the Greek words for love and man.
As a tattooist — under the name Phil Sparrow — and man of letters he drew the attention of Cliff Ingram, aka Cliff Raven
Cliff Raven
Cliff Raven Ingram was one of a handful of tattoo artists who pioneered the adoption of the Japanese tattoo aesthetic in the U.S. Born in Indiana as "Cliff H...
, and from his Oakland studio, Don Ed Hardy. He mentored both into the profession. Cliff Raven became famous as a tattooist in Chicago, and by mentoring others, generated a line of noted tattooists (Dale Grande, Robert Benedetti, Bob Roberts, Pat Fish, and Thomas Raven among others).
Steward died aged 84 of chronic pulmonary disease in Berkeley, California
Berkeley, California
Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...
.
External links
- Patricia Cohen, "Sexual Outlaw on the Gay Frontier", The New York Times (July 26, 2010) about Secret Historian, biography of Steward by Justin Spring to be published in September 2010
- "A Very Magical Life: Talking with Samuel Steward" Interview by Owen Keehnen in GLBTQ
- American tattoo history, Sparrow (Andros), Phil... The New Tattoo, Victoria Lautmant, Abbeyville Press