Gay icon a prototypical portrait of a tortured closet case." Due to Saint Sebastian's status as a gay icon, Tennessee Williams chose to use the saint's name for the martyred character Sebastian in his play, "Suddenly, Last Summer". The name was also used by Oscar Wilde—as Sebastian Melmoth—when in exile after his release from prison. Wilde, an Irish writer and poet, was about as "out of the closet" as was possible for the late 19th century, and is himself considered to be a gay icon. Marie Antoinette was an early lesbian icon. Rumors about her relationships with women circulated in pornographic detail
The Sun in Exile intermittent tambourine banging it does not matter because the tale is told in the first person by a wonderful, unforgettable spinster writer of 60, named Miss Alexandra Pendlebury. Miss Pendlebury, rich, much travelled, gently snobbish, both about people and culture, selfish, lonely, and superfluous, is a superb touching portrait." The Sun in Exile The Sun in Exile (1955) is a novel by Australian writer Dymphna Cusack. The narrator of the story, Alexandra Pendlebury, is a middle-aged spinster who writes travel books. On a sea voyage from Australia to England she shares a cabin with Vicky, a young Australian artist. All