''Thy Neighbor's Wife'' is a non-fiction book by
Gay Talese, published in 1981 and updated in 2009.
The book is an exploration of sexuality in America from after World War II through the 1970s, with notable discussion of the
free love
Free love is a social movement that accepts all forms of love. The movement's initial goal was to separate the State (polity), state from sexual and romantic matters such as marriage, birth control, and adultery. It stated that such issues we ...
subculture. It provides a snapshot of liberated pre-
AIDS
The HIV, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks the immune system. Without treatment, it can lead to a spectrum of conditions including acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). It is a Preventive healthcare, pr ...
sexual morality.
In preparation for writing the book, Talese resided for several months at
Sandstone Retreat, a
clothing-optional, open sexuality resort for
swingers, in California.
In 1979, prior to the book's publication,
United Artists purchased the film rights to ''Thy Neighbor's Wife'' for $2.5 million, which at the time was the largest amount ever paid for film rights to any book.
At the time, UA contemplated making as many as three films based on the book,
and in 1980,
William Friedkin
William David Friedkin (; August 29, 1935 – August 7, 2023) was an American film, television and opera director, producer, and screenwriter who was closely identified with the "New Hollywood" movement of the 1970s. Beginning his career in doc ...
agreed to write and direct the first film, which he contemplated would receive an
X rating
An X rating is a film rating that indicates that the film contains content that is considered to be suitable only for adults. Films with an X rating may have scenes of graphic violence or explicit sexual acts that may be disturbing or offensive ...
.
[See , discussing the fact that the film had not been made as of 1991.]
References
External links
The Life and Loves of Gay Talese discussion of the work and its author from
ABC News ABC News most commonly refers to:
* ABC News (Australia), a national news service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation
* ABC News (United States), a news-gathering and broadcasting division of the American Broadcasting Company
ABC News may a ...
.
1981 non-fiction books
Works by Gay Talese
Non-fiction books about sexuality
Doubleday (publisher) books
English-language non-fiction books
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