From the Archives: Masters and Johnson sexual revolution

The first reference to the pioneering Masters and Johnson book “Human Sexual Response” first appeared in the pages of the Herald in 1966.

It was a best-seller and the paper, as far as I can tell, didn’t dare touch the subject — in depth at least — until 1973. Here are both links to those pages:

June 1966 Masters and Johnson book listing

July 1973 article on ailing marriages

Why this subject? Being your loyal archivist I wanted to understand how the Herald, usually an unabashed publication, handled such a delicate subject. But there’s an alternative motive, too.

In the mid-1970s I was the go-to sitter for a neighborhood packed with rambunctious boys. I’d play pick-up basketball, street hockey, cook hot dogs, watch TV, and let them stay up late. The parents would usually go out early and return after midnight.

It was good money, but it left me trying to stay awake. One mother would always bake me a bunt cake, which was welcome; another had a wicker basket full of paperback books. That’s what sent me into our archives.

I gravitated to the science fiction books — “Stranger in a Strange Land,” was amazing — but one quiet night I thumbed through a book that had the cover ripped off.

It was “Human Sexual Response” by William Masters and Virginia Johnson. It explained the mysteries of life we’re all too embarrassed to ask adults about. As a 7th and 8th grader, I was curious but conflicted. This book did more good than any Sex Education class we were all forced to take. We’d squirm in our seats hesitant to ask any questions and just go along so we could get to lunch on time.

But as I read that book, at my own pace over a few nights at that neighbor’s house, I understood more about relationships than ever before.

The Kinsey Institute states: The awards for the authors came from the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors and Therapists in 1978, and the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors and Therapists in 1985 and 1992.”

Masters died in 2001 at the age of 85. Johnson passed away in 2013 at age 88, the institute adds.

It’s amazing it took all those esteemed organizations that long to recognize Masters and Johnson and the advancements they made in the study of how we make it through life together.

Books are where it all begins and ends. Journalism is the first draft. I’ve set off on a few projects, but until then I chased this one down from a distant memory. It’s true, never judge a book by its cover.

Masters and Johnson explained the human sexual response cycle — which refers to the “structured series of changes the body goes through physically, psychologically, and emotionally when becoming aroused and engaging in sexual activity,” one scholarly report states.

I know there’s more to this story — the criticism, other studies, books, a TV series or two, “Mad Men,” debates, and curriculum arguments — but that’s not what this archive installment is about. It is about a memory of what a book did for a curious reader.

One book demystified what was, and still is, ruined by others. (Social media now, magazines back then.) I came to my own conclusions and to this day am grateful I picked up that paperback.

My noon deadline for this archive newsletter is a few minutes ago, so I’ll see you next week. All emails welcome to [email protected].

What books made a mark with you?