The Project
The Pye/Harris Legacy Project (PHLP) was inspired by Ed Pye and Bob Harris, a couple who met in 1947, and lived fifty-eight full and loving years together until Dr. Harris’s death in 2005.
1947 Ed and Bob in Los Angeles
Before his death in 2012, Mr. Pye co-founded the PHLP to further their lifetime of work and giving in three areas: environmental protection and education, the protection and proper treatment of developmentally disabled minors, and equal treatment and rights for the gay and lesbian community.
Premier Project: The Coming Out Series
The first of four videos, ³Coming Out in the 1950s,² was released in 2010. Interviews between high school and college students and gay and lesbian elders chronicle the trials and tribulations of those turbulent times. The purpose of the project is to reassure young gay people they are not alone and that living with pride and dignity creates a powerful political statement.
2003 Ed and Bob in Yosemite
“Coming Out in the 1950s” premiered at the Frameline Film Festival in 2011 to audience acclaim. Its YouTube site has received over 40,00 hits and uncounted more through cross-posts on the Internet. DVD copies of the video and a teaching curriculum, co-developed by PHLP and the Gay Straight Alliances, were distributed to 130 middle and high schools throughout California. Curriculum discussion topics offer counselors, teachers, and students a broad overview of the modern gay political movement, the 1950s to the present.
The second in the series, “Coming Out in the 1960′s” was completed in January 2013, and has been submitted to film festivals throughout the United States.
Two additional videos are planned: ”Coming Out after Stonewall,” and “Coming Out in the Age of AIDS.” PHLP is actively seeking funds to cover filming, production, distribution, and publicity costs for the remaining segments of this vital, historical film project.
The Pye/Harris Legacy Project is a 501(c)(3) corporation and donations are tax-deductible. If you have suggestions where the first video should be sent, or if you have ideas for additional funding for the project, please contact us at pyeharrisproject@aol.com.
Donations may be made to the Pye/Harris Legacy Project, Inc. c/o Robert Pye, 4600 Roseville Road, Suite 220, North Highlands, CA 95660.