Jack Bloch and Max Gundy
This short and sweet World War II love note is very special—and not just because it prominently features an alligator. The postcard is one of four digitized items from the "Gundy (Max) and Jack D. Bloch papers" (Coll2008-070), which are held by the ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archives at USC. According to the collection's finding aid, New Yorkers Jack Bloch (1912-1996) and Max Gundy (1910-1996) met and fell in love in the 1930s (Oliveira, 2008). Like countless other couples, they were separated after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor spurred the United States to enter World War II. Jack joined the U.S. Army in March 1942, and would spend the rest of the war serving in Europe. Unlike heterosexual soldiers, however, he had to guard his words when writing to his sweetheart back home. After only two months in the army (perhaps even during leave from training in America), Jack sent this cheerful photograph to Max along with the following message:
“To Max: Words can not express my thoughts. As ever, Jack.”
Out of context, nothing about this photograph or its inscription suggest that the sender and recipient are anything but friends. Jack does not write down any of his thoughts or feelings, leaving Max the job of deciphering his real meaning. With context, though—knowing that these two men were in love—the line takes on more romantic connotations. Jack suggests that his emotions are too deeply felt to be accurately conveyed by words on paper, reminding Max that he feels the same way about him that he always has (presumably that Jack loves and misses Max). Jack’s message is also very literal—he cannot use words to express his thoughts, because his lover is a man and not a woman. As a member of the military his mail would most likely have been read before sending (to ensure that no classified information was being shared), and if the army found out that he was gay he could have been discharged. Ultimately, though, this love story had a happy ending. Jack survived the war, and lived together with Max until they both retired in the late 1970s and moved to Long Beach, California (Oliveira, 2008). At the end of their lives, the couple died “within three months of each other, after more than 60 years together” (Oliveira, 2008).