# What's the earliest use of "beard" to describe a gay/straight relationship? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 1, 2004, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-use-of-beard-to-describe-a-gay-straight-relationship/253066 "2004-07-01T16:16:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Chastain86](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Chastain86](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chastain86)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2004, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-use-of-beard-to-describe-a-gay-straight-relationship/253066/1 "2004-07-01T16:16:31Z")
I’m just curious. How long has the term “beard” been used in reference to a gay man marrying a woman to keep up straight appearances? Sorry if this has been asked before. I searched the archives and didn’t see anything. ---
**Author:** ![Chastain86](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Chastain86](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chastain86)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2004, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-use-of-beard-to-describe-a-gay-straight-relationship/253066/2 "2004-07-01T20:21:07Z")
Weird. This thread isn’t showing up in GQ during a search. Bumping it to see if there’s some problem. I can’t imagine this question would be offensive enough to delete. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2004, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-use-of-beard-to-describe-a-gay-straight-relationship/253066/3 "2004-07-01T20:55:40Z")
This [cite](http://www.hurricane.net/%7Ewizard/19b.html) dates it to the 1960s. My Random House slang dictionary has an example from 1972. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2004, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-use-of-beard-to-describe-a-gay-straight-relationship/253066/4 "2004-07-01T21:16:28Z")
I remember hearing the term, exclusively within gay circles, in the mid-60s, but I don’t believe it crossed over to the general population til at least the late 70s to early 80s. ---
**Author:** ![Julius\_Henry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8797f3/32.png) [@Julius\_Henry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Julius_Henry)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2004, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-use-of-beard-to-describe-a-gay-straight-relationship/253066/5 "2004-07-01T22:11:07Z")
I’m sure that word was used to describe Henry Kissinger in Charles Ashman’s 1972 book, **Kissinger: The Adventures of Super Kraut**. Kissinger would appear in public with a married friend and a beautiful model or actress who people would assume (incorrectly) was with Kissinger instead of the married guy. ---
**Author:** ![aaslatten](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f14d63/32.png) [@aaslatten](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aaslatten)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-use-of-beard-to-describe-a-gay-straight-relationship/253066/6 "2004-07-02T01:42:02Z")
The term was also used in Woody Allen’s “Broadway Danny Rose” (1984) to describe a guy pretending to date the girlfriend of a married guy. I had no idea it originated as a term for a gay/straight relationship until now. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-use-of-beard-to-describe-a-gay-straight-relationship/253066/7 "2004-07-02T04:19:56Z")
I’d never heard of it before now either. Why ‘beard’? What’s the pun? Is it that’s its just a visible accoutrement serving no real purpose? ---
**Author:** ![Ms2001](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ms2001/32/18463_2.png) [@Ms2001](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ms2001)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2004, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-use-of-beard-to-describe-a-gay-straight-relationship/253066/8 "2004-07-02T04:30:29Z")
> [@Hail Ants](#): > > I’d never heard of it before now either. > > Why ‘beard’? What’s the pun? Is it that’s its just a visible accoutrement serving no real purpose? A beard makes you look like a Real Man. I suppose the implication is that gays aren’t Real Men. > [@aaslatten](#): > > The term was also used in Woody Allen’s “Broadway Danny Rose” (1984) to describe a guy pretending to date the girlfriend of a married guy. I had no idea it originated as a term for a gay/straight relationship until now. I had no idea it could refer to a guy pretending to date the girlfriend of a married guy.