Making Gay History | LGBTQ Oral Histories from the Archive
Jul 2, 2026 · 27 min · 5 segments
Pat Bond joined the Women’s Army Corps in 1945, driven by patriotism and a desire to be among lesbians. The war required bodies, so the U.S. military turned a blind eye to service members’ sexual…
Eric MarcusHost
Pat was luckier than the other servicewomen who got caught up in the Tokyo Purge.
Nearly all 500 women in her company were charged with homosexuality, though relatively few received the dishonorable discharge they'd all been threatened with.
The lesbian officers who'd collaborated in the witch hunt were transferred or allowed to resign.
After her memorable appearance in Word Is Out, Pat wrote and starred in several successful one-woman shows, which she toured across the country.
But Pat found her greatest acclaim with Gertie, Gertie, Gertie Stein is Back, Back, Back, in which she played lesbian icon Gertrude Stein.
As one reviewer noted, if Gertrude Stein were alive today, she'd be playing Pat Bond.
Pat Bond died just three months after her interview with Alan Barabay on December 24, 1990.
Pat was luckier than the other servicewomen who got caught up in the Tokyo Purge.
Nearly all 500 women in her company were charged with homosexuality, though relatively few received the dishonorable discharge they'd all been threatened with.
The lesbian officers who'd collaborated in the witch hunt were transferred or allowed to resign.
After her memorable appearance in Word Is Out, Pat wrote and starred in several successful one-woman shows, which she toured across the country.
But Pat found her greatest acclaim with Gertie, Gertie, Gertie Stein is Back, Back, Back, in which she played lesbian icon Gertrude Stein.
As one reviewer noted, if Gertrude Stein were alive today, she'd be playing Pat Bond.
Pat Bond died just three months after her interview with Alan Barabay on December 24, 1990.
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