Includes bibliographical references and index

Render unto Cesare : the queerness of Caligari ; "My beautiful wickedness" : The Wizard of Oz as lesbian fantasy ; Queerness, comedy, and The women ; The queer aesthete, the diva, and The red shoes ; Everyone's here for love : bisexuality and Gentlemen prefer blondes ; "He's a transvestite!" "Ah, not exactly." How queer is My psycho.

"Surrender Dorothy," read the Wicked Witch's jet exhaust, leaving the startled Munchkins to wonder what the message meant. So you think you know all about film classics? Guess again.
Flaming Classics turns the heat up on the movies we love best. In his wicked readings of film favorites, Alexander Doty takes us to the queer side of criticism, offering fresh and controversial views of the stars, the plots, and the directors of our best loved and most iconic films. Arguing against the assumption that only explicitly gay films are subject to gay readings, he looks at six classics and reads them for their queer potential. With both affection and scholarly rigor, he teases out the lesbian fantasy inherent in The Wizard of Oz, the gay nightmare narrative of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, the bisexual erotics of Gentlemen prefer Blondes, the queerness of Norman Bates, and even makes an argument about Citizen Kane's dying word, Rosebud. (Who knew?)
A seasoned critic with a personal voice, Alexander Doty is a scholar-fan who writes with both readerships in mind. This lively, opinionated, and playful look at the movies is a must-read for film buffs, and for anyone interested in gender, sexuality, and popular culture.
One thing's for sure. After reading Flaming Classics you'll know you're definitely not in Kansas anymore.