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Now onto today's video, Eleanor Roosevelt's Lesbian Love Affair With Lorena Hickok.
The Showtime original series, The First Lady, begins April 17th, 2022 at 9pm Eastern time.
It is an anthology series that brings us an inside
look at the women who were married to the president of the united states.
The promotional material for the show says that The First Lady will be, "exploring everything
from their journeys to Washington, family life, and world-changing political contributions" and
that "the impact of the White House's women is no longer hidden from view."
The first season will include Eleanor Roosevelt, played by Gillian Anderson;
Betty Ford, played by Michelle Pfeiffer and Michelle Obama played by Viola Davis.
I am looking forward to the show immensely because, as my viewers might know,
I am all about bringing out the hertory and the truth of the hertory
of the many fabulous, fierce and feisty women in history.
Having said that, I am wondering at this point, if the show is going to finally bring out the full,
unabridged history of Eleanor Roosevelt's long time affair with Lorena Hickok, a journalist,
author and devoted friend and mentor to First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt.
Other shows, such as Hyde Park on Hudson starring Olivia Williams as Eleanor Roosevelt,
have alluded to the relationship while others have just plain ignroed it.
At this point I am only going to point out the evidence of the love these two
women had for each other. If Showtime finally does admit to the affair,
and I don't know why they wouldn't in today's world of LGBT acceptance - discounting Florida,
of course; then I will do a video that goes into more detail about the true nature of the
"close friendship" of Eleanor Roosevelt and Lorena Hickok.
The Letters
In 1978, ten years after the death of Lorena Hickok,
18 boxes containing nearly 4,000 letters exchanged between Eleanor and Hick (as she was known) were
brought to light. The letters were passionate and revealing of their love for one another.
Sadly Hick had burned the most explicit of the letters to protect Eleanor.
She knew that being out as a lesbian was a dangerous thing, and she loved Eleanor enough
to make sure any hint of the possible physical nature of their relationship remained hidden.
It appears that Eleanor, on the other hand, was not so very discreet. In the book containing
excerpts from the letters, called Empty Without You, you might say that the title says it all,
Hick told Eleanor's daughter, "Your mother wasn't always so very discreet in her letters to me."
Hick loved Eleanor and Eleanor loved Hick. That mutual love comes across
quite clearly in the following audio file of a reading of an excerpt of one of the letters.
Here are a few ore excerpts from the letters....
Eleanor to Lorena, March 5, 1933.
“Hick my dearest, I cannot go to bed to-night without a word to you.
I felt a little as though a part of me was leaving to-night, you have grown so
much to be a part of my life that it is empty without you even though I’m busy every minute.”
Eleanor to Lorena, February 4, 1934 "Dearest, we are happy to-gether & strong
relationships have to grow deep roots. We’re growing them now,
partly because we are separated, the foliage & the flowers will come somehow I’m sure of it.”
Hick to Eleanor, December 5, 1933 “Only eight more days. Twenty-four
hours from now it will be only seven more—just a week! I’ve been trying today to bring back your
face—to remember just how you look. Funny how even the dearest face will fade away in time.
Most clearly I remember your eyes with a kind of teasing smile in them, and the feeling of that
soft spot just northeast of the corner of your mouth against my lips. I wonder what we’ll do when
we meet—what we’ll say. Well—I’m rather proud of us, aren’t you? I think we’ve done rather well.”
There are more words of endearment,
more proclomations of love between Eleanor and Hick in the letters.
What if they made a movie that focused solely on this relationship? What if the true and complete
story of Eleanor Roosevelt's life of hidden passion was finally revealed without hesitation?
What if someone deemed to portray the blandly sexless figurehead of First Lady Eleanor
Roosevelt as a loving, breathing human being whose open secret was finally out in the open?
What are your thoughts on this? Tell me your thoughts in the comments below. We here at the
fabulous, fierce and feisty women in history channel look forward to hearing from you.