The Naked Civil Servant (film) The Naked Civil Servant (film) The Naked Civil Servant is a 1975 biographical film based on Quentin Crisp's 1968 book of the same name, starring John Hurt and directed by Jack Gold, adapted by Philip Mackie, and produced by Verity Lambert. Originally broadcast on 17 December, the 77-minute television film was produced by Thames Television for the British channel ITV. Crisp is depicted from youth to middle age. For his performance, Hurt won the BAFTA for Best Actor in 1976 and the production also won the 1976 Prix Italia. In 1976, it was shown on US channel WOR-TV and later
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