It was broadcast only 3 years after Stonewall and 4 years before I came out. In Atlanta, where I lived, it was broadcast late at night because the subject matter was deemed unsuitable for children. My mom was not entirely happy with me watching it, but mostly because it was on so late. She did not turn off the TV.

Hope Lange, as I recall, played the mom/ex-wife, and was also terrific in the role.

By today’s standards of “positive,” it is not very advanced. By 1972 standards, it was light years ahead.

The father keeps apologizing for being a pervert, and comes across as a gutless coward who’s ready to abandon his family to live a lifestyle he knows is wrong. The son on the other hands reacts very very badly to the news his father is living with a man, and NOBODY (not the mother, not the policemen, and not even the father!) tells him he should respect his dad no matter what etc.

Everybody’s acting like being with a man is basically the worst thing this father could do, and look how it’s wreaking havoc on his son’s life.

Indeed, nobody commits suicide at the end, but I wouldn’t go as far as to say this movie is a positive portrayal either.