The term “lavender marriage” became popular in the 20th century and describes marriages that were not concluded out of love, but rather out of social necessity. In other words, a lavender marriage describes a marriage of convenience that was often entered into by unouted homosexuals. Lavender was chosen because the color of the plant was the signal color for homosexuals in Germany from the 1920s onwards – lilac was also long considered the color of gays and lesbians in the USA.
One of the most prominent examples of a lavender marriage is that of the former western hero Rock Hudson. In the 1950s, Rock was the epitome of a man – tall, strong, good-looking and a Hollywood star. Because Hudson’s sexual orientation threatened to become known and homosexuality meant the end of his career, his agent at the time, Henry Wilson, arranged a marriage of convenience between his client and her in 1955 Secretary Phyllis Gates. Hudson’s reputation as a heartthrob remained intact.
This case has been followed by several others to this day – because LGBTQIA+ still seems to be a problem for many people, especially in politics, sports or entertainment. It was only in 1994 that Section 175, which criminalized homosexuality, was removed from the criminal code by the federal government.
