50 Years Ago, America Got Its First Look at ‘The Homosexual Couple’

It was in 1971 that Look magazine caused jaws to drop around the country. In an issue on “The American Family,” about Jack Baker and Michael McConnell, the magazine devoted an entire feature to “The Homosexual Couple.”

How Jack Baker and Michael McConnell Met

Jack Baker and Michael McConnell met in 1967 — years before the American Psychological Association de-listed homosexuality as a mental illness — and fell for each other. But Michael wanted them to live openly and honestly: “If we’re going to do this,” he told Jack when they moved in together, “you have to find a way for us to get married.”

So they tried to get a marriage license. In 1970, they were turned down by Hennepin County, Minnesota. That triggered a lawsuit that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court, resulting in a ruling that marriage between same-sex couples was of no interest to federal law. The ruling essentially closed the book on any further federal challenges to marriage bans for decades.

(Ultimately, of course, the Supreme Court would correct that decision in 2015, legalizing marriage nationwide under the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the 14th Amendment.)

Finding a Way Forward

Defeated, the couple didn’t give up. Michael legally adopted Jack, and then Jack changed his legal first name to Pat. Because of the new gender-neutral name, the couple was able to submit a marriage license to a clerk who didn’t realize they were both men — and so, they announced, they were legally married at last.

Government officials were horrified when they realized what had happened, and a flurry of arguments and hearings followed.

To this day, Jack Baker and Michael McConnell insist they have been married since 1971, and according to the National Archives, the marriage license has never been revoked, so it may still be valid. But on the other hand, the couple was denied the ability to file a joint tax return or file for veteran’s benefits.

Refusing to Back Down

Now that marriage equality is the law of the land, the couple has chosen not to file for a new marriage license. “To re-apply now becomes an admission that what we did was not legal, and I will never admit that,” Jack told The New York Times.

Their lives are quieter now; Michael worked as a librarian for years, though he was hounded by hostile employers who objected to homosexuality at the start of his career. They seldom give interviews, and their days of activism are mostly behind them — though they did write a memoir in 2015.

That January 1971 Look article remains an important milestone in the LGBT movement — a mainstream publication referring to a queer couple as a “family” was unheard of at the time. “Just like being married,” the magazine wrote, decades before the rest of the country would catch up.

Did you know about Look‘s article on Jack Baker and Michael McConnell?

This article was originally published on December, 29 2020. It has since been updated.