Photos courtesy of Gerald Hannon

Gerald Hannon and Ed Jackson around the time of the "Men loving boys loving men" trial.

With his neatly trimmed grey moustache, small glasses and easygoing manner, it’s hard to think of Gerald Hannon as shocking. For the casual observer to see him sitting in his tastefully decorated downtown apartment, you would think he’s reached the height of middle-class respectability.

But you’d be wrong.

In his 63 years, Hannon has been a central figure in Toronto’s gay liberation movement. The award-winning freelance writer has also moonlighted as a prostitute while working part time as a Ryerson journalism instructor, and even went to court over an article he wrote on intergenerational relationships.

Hannon has been called a lot of things, but “respectable” and “middle-class” are descriptions not often applied to him.

It has been more than 10 years since Hannon left Ryerson after his contract wasn’t renewed following media-tinged controversy. Those at Ryerson who remember Hannon probably recall him as the “hooker prof,” but there’s a lot more to his story than that.

Born on July 10, 1944, Hannon’s formative years were spent in Marathon, a small town in northern Ontario near Lake Superior.

When Hannon was growing up, Marathon was a pulp mill town. The likelihood of one day working in the factory, along with the fact that his father beat him and his mother, made him “absolutely desperate” to get out.

After graduating from high school an Ontario Scholar, he left for St. Michael’s College. He got a degree in philosophy before meeting one man who would change his life.

Hannon met Ed Jackson shortly after graduating and later came out as a gay man. During a trip the pair took in 1969, they participated in a demonstration for gay rights in London, England.

Hannon as Dr. Bartolo in a 2004 production of The Barber of Seville.

“It seemed different to walk in a public demonstration of gayness,” Jackson said.

Upon returning to Toronto, they got involved with The Body Politic (TBP), Toronto’s first gay newspaper. TBP was run by a collective of gay activists including Herb Spiers, Hugh Brewster and Jearld Moldenhauer. This was still a few years before Hannon would enter the media spotlight.

In 1977, Hannon wrote “Men loving boys loving men,” and suddenly after its publication, he was getting attention.

Part of a series, the article focused on three men and their young lovers. It was written months before its publication date. TBP collective members delayed publishing it because a shoeshine boy had recently been murdered in a Yonge Street massage parlour, making the whole topic a sensitive one.

Eventually though, the article was published.

“We realized there was never going to be a right time for this article,” said Rick Bebout, a former TBP collective member.

Soon after the article found its way into print, Hannon found his way into custody.

In late 1977, police raided TBP offices. Later, in January 1978, Hannon and Jackson were arrested, along with a third man, Ken Popert.

They were charged with using the mails for the purpose of transmitting indecent, immoral or scurrilous matter – essentially, they were being charged for printing Hannon’s controversial article in TBP.

One of the reasons he wrote the article was to counter negative views of pedophilia, he said. Though he says he’s never been attracted to preteens, he does have an eye for younger men.

The case went to trial on Jan. 2, 1979. It lasted until February of the same year when Provincial Court Judge Sydney Harris acquitted all three men.

“(During the trial) we always felt buffered by a supportive community,” Hannon said.

Though Hannon briefly left the public eye following his acquittal, he again came under attack by the media in 1995, when the Toronto Sun revealed he was supplementing his income as a Ryerson instructor with money made from prostitution.

Hannon started teaching freelance writing at Ryerson in the early ’90s. He had been working as a prostitute since 1987.

“(Prostitution) was the thing that brought in extra cash before Ryerson started bringing in extra cash,” he said.

Bret Dawson, 36, is one of Hannon’s former students and has since reconnected with him. Dawson was in the two-year journalism program at Ryerson from 1993 to 1995.

“I thought he was one of the brightest lights there was at Ryerson,” Dawson said, adding that he’s disappointed with how the school handled the scandal.

Hannon’s views on intergenerational sex along with his second job as a prostitute were enough to get him suspended by the university pending the outcome of an investigation. The outcome saw him reinstated on Dec. 20, 1995. He resumed teaching in January 1996. When his contract came up for renewal that same year, he was denied the job. He later received a settlement from Ryerson, (under the terms of the settlement, he cannot say how much it was.)

“It was a pretty shameful moment for the university,” Dawson said. “There was this amazing teacher...what did it matter that he sucked dick for money?”

For several years after leaving Ryerson, Hannon says he wanted to return to teaching, but that desire has now passed.

Today, Hannon still works as a freelance writer. He also sees the odd client from his days as a hustler – including a former film student who met Hannon while studying at Ryerson.

Apart from his occupations as journalist and part-time prostitute, Hannon has other hobbies. In 2001, he began performing with the Toronto Opera Repertoire, an amateur opera company. He is now president of the company’s board.

“I love it. I get to sing stuff beyond my powers,” he said.

This season, he will play Marcello in Puccini’s La Boheme. He is a Puccini fan and has been since his time in Marathon.

He was given the nickname “Pooch” while he attended St. Michael’s College because of his admiration for the deceased Italian composer’s work.

So how will Gerald Hannon be remembered? As a gay activist, journalist, teacher, prostitute or, possibly, amateur opera singer?

“It’s probably too early to tell,” says Popert, the third co-defendant from Hannon’s “Men loving boys loving men” trial. Popert is now the president and executive director of Pink Triangle Press, a not-for-profit corporation that oversees Xtra, the successor publication to TBP, which folded in 1987.

“He still has several more years in which to commit one of his famous indiscretions,” he said with a laugh.