Boonies

Boonies

1979-06 Cover

Zine published in 1979 & 1980.

Bob O'Neill: One of the first attempts to give rural gays in Nova Scotia some voice was a little 'Zeen' called Boonies. I had moved out of the city to the wilds of the Fundy Shore and very much missed the fun I had at the Turret et al.

I got a small grant from the GAE and set out with technical help from BobErtel, who was doing HaveYouHeard out of his apartment over Astroff's on Dresden Row, now Key Lime Pie. Using graph paper, rubber cement and Xerox, I produced FOUR (!!) issues and sent them all over the world.

At one time the mailing list was nearly 100 people. I found interested readers through ads in "Have You Heard", The Body Politic" and "RFD" (which still publishes and has a web-site) I think I still have some of the original lay-out proofs somewhere.

Most memorable contributions were art work and poetry by JimMacSwain. The first issue had a poem of his called "In Praise of Pink Toilet Paper" with the opening line: How soft it feels when after fucking, you wipe my ass with pink toilet paper".

I found readers through "Rural Delivery" (still being published) and the owner of that magazine refused to run the ad because he was freaked by Jim's poem!

The task of producing and mailing Boonies became so not worth it and it eventually it was added to the heap of other well-meant, but ill-conceived projects that emerged during those heady days of early Gay Lib in Halifax.

Here's an October 16, 2025 article about it by Alex Turgeon in the journal Public Parking: From here to there, and back again: on returning to 'Boonies'1

Category: PrintMedia