Iconic gay writer and North Carolina native Armistead Maupin will be featured this month among 31 LGBT history icons. Maupin’s entry into the list of icons comes from Equality Forum’s annual October LGBT history month series.
Maupin was born in Washington, D.C., in 1944, but grew up in Raleigh. He graduated from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in 1966. As a student, he wrote for The Daily Tar Heel and, after graduating, worked for Raleigh news station WRAL, where he served under the tutelage of former TV commentator and later U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms.
He later overcame his youthful conservative streak, moving to San Francisco after taking a job with the Associated Press. In 1976, he began his classic “Tales of the City” series at the San Francisco Chronicle.
Maupin’s LGBT history month icon profile will be unveiled on Oct. 24 at lgbthistorymonth.com, where readers can also learn more about each of the 31 other icons highlighted this month.
Other North Carolina history icons profiled in the past include Durham activist Mandy Carter, Facebook co-founder Chris Hughes and painter Robert Rauschenberg. : :