#mercedes mccambridge

Most of the queer talk about Giant relates to Rock Hudson and James Dean, but let’s not sleep on Mercedes McCambridge.  She plays a real Mercedes McCambridge type, which is to say a coded lesbian.  She’s Rock Hudson’s spinster sister.  And I think you know what I mean by spinster.  At one point after she bemoans the fact that every woman on their ranch is a bride except for her, someone responds, “Why Luz, everybody in this county knows you’d rather herd cattle than make love.”  Fair enough, but counterpoint: maybe she’d just rather herd cattle than make love to men.  Did you ever even think of that?  Alas, the fate of her character is that of so many Film Lesbians.  Meaning (spoilers for a 60-year-old movie?)… she goes up to that great cattle ranch in the sky.  Which is, quite frankly, even more of a reason to think she’s gay.