Just found the epilogue for the first time. So grateful to have some sense of closure for Mark. Though he never knew me, I’ve had the pleasure of knowing him.
I first watched Silverlake Life in 2017 and I just finished watching again it tonight. This is the first time that I watch the epilogue. For the longest time I wondered what had happened to Mark. Who was with him? Did it happen in that house? It took awhile for me to stop thinking about it because it just made me so sad. Seeing and hearing Mark in this footage answered the questions but left me feeling numb. Thank you Mr. Friedman for sharing all of this humanity with us.
I don't know how to make people understand how meaningful comments like yours are to me. Thank you. Mark stayed in that house and he had a small support system, 2 or 3 friends and AIDS and social service organizations. His closest friends did not live in Los Angeles and so saw him infrequently. I don't know if he died at home or in a hospital or hospice.
This and the original documentary are so beautiful. Thank you Peter for putting tom and marks story out into the world for me and everyone to see. Very touching.
Beautiful???? Seeing 2 ugly, gay, aids patients covered in gross ks, die is beautiful???? It’s disgusting. I feel sorry for their families, but not them, they engaged in the very behaviors that caused them to get aids, so that’s what they get. If that’s harsh, oh well. Don’t do risky shit and you should be ok. I’ll never die from a parachuting accident because I don’t go parachuting. Not gonna die from a heroin (or any drug) overdose cuz I don’t mess with drugs.
This was an absolute amazing film. I’ve probably watched it 10 times over the past month and it’s just amazing because it pulls every emotion out of me when I watch it. I love how candid it is and how you just can feel the love between Tom and Mark. It’s so incredibly sad that strides for HIV and AIDS were still pretty far away at the time of the filming process. I hope this film raises more awareness. Thank you Peter.
Thank you for your beautiful comment. When you get a chance, you might also like the short film I made right before I completed Silverlake Life, FIGHTING IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA: ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html
Ive watched SilverLake Life so many times.....to see Mark .....is just as heartbreaking! This is the most moving documentary Ive ever seen ❤ They have to be extremely proud of how the film turned out!
That you see my friend truly shows how horrifying and tragic AIDS was back then. Just to see these people die looking almost like skeletons having lost so much weight is absolutely tragic and scary.
Films like this were essential for confronting what it was to live with AIDS before medication. I think it's important that the choice to show these horrors was that of the people we see on screen. For me, it's of a piece with Derek Jarman's BLUE, which is the complete opposite-- echoing the director's blindness because of the disease, the entire film is only sound with a blue screen, its account of this plague told only in words.
The art of life. The art of filming it. The art of puting it together. Thank you so much to all of you. Huge humanity lesson. Straight to the heart and brain. As beautiful and sad as a Leonard Cohen song. Made me think about that sentence in «Chelsea hotel»: «i can t keep track of any fallen robin». Well, sometimes u can, and it definetely gives so much inner strength to others. I consider i can fly higher after seeing this, whatever life will bring me, this will remain forever the living proof of the courage and dignity and cleverness human beings can have in hard times. It gives hope. So thank you. (And as i read u re somewhere in France, greetings from across the border, that funny little country called Belgium)
@@peterfriedman7193 @Peter Friedman well u just did, and more! and it means a lot to me too. Thank you for your very nice answer. I hope u ll find funds to raise, in these «after covid» times...One of my friends just had to stop producing them. Hard times for film makers, among other «reality» witnesses... Wish you the best!
Silverlake is probably the best film I’ve ever watched. I always wondered tho, Mark and Tom were together for 20 years which would have been pre-HIV when they met, so how did they contract the disease? Unless they were in an open relationship which doesn’t make sense, they seemed like a proper old couple if that sounds right…
@@peterfriedman7193 ah ok. Thank you for responding. I lost my own brother to AIDS thirty years ago, and every time I watch Silverlake I’m struck by how much Mark took a pro-active stance to fighting his illness, whereas Tom seemed to be the passive one. and yet Mark was diagnosed earlier and lived longer. It’s tragic to think of how many people this insidious disease affected, Mark and Tom were very obviously intelligent and likeable people, you did such a fantastic job of capturing their personalities in the film.
Thank you. Tom wasn't passive in life but the diagnosis triggered a depression from which he never recovered. He knew his dreams would never be fulfilled, so he lost his will to fight. @@Dia_7hom
@@peterfriedman7193 Peter, your last comment was possibly the most heartbreaking thing I’ve read in a long time. Looking back I think my brother fell into a similar mindset. He was gregarious, warm, funny, incredibly talented and people would gravitate towards him, purely because his positivity and energy was like a shot of serotonin. His diagnosis took away his personality, slowly but noticeably. Towards the end we were just grateful - selfishly - that he had lived another day. My other brother, his twin, took over the role of the peppy one and told him they had to reach their 30th birthday together and jokingly warned him not to die before that. Their birthday is August 2nd and he died May 23rd, never got to see his 30th. I’m telling you this because our family is very much like Tom’s family, and by bringing them into the film, showing their visit to the country club and hinting of their middle class social status you made it very obvious that HIV/AIDS isn’t just something that the down and outs are likely to have, it’s indiscriminate and that came across really well in the film. I do hope Tom’s mother got the support she must have needed after losing Tom, then growing close to Mark and losing him too. I got the impression that she was overwhelmed by learning of Tom’s sexuality, then his diagnosis, and it was as if it was almost too much for her to process. Sorry for rambling, but this is a subject close to my heart, and also I’m sure I’m not the only one who grew to love Tom and Mark in the film
I can't count the number of times I have watched Silverlake Life.... now I have something new to watch. I would watch any other footage as well. So grateful that Tom and Mark opened up their lives to us. I am going through stage 4 cancer and that's not anything like AIDS. But there's lots of pain and sickness. With modern medicine, AIDS has sort of been put into the realm of "chronic" but it is so expensive to treat and the victims are still very sick and in pain. People don't always "get" that.
I'm sorry to hear you're ill. I appreciate your comment and am glad you appreciate the film so much. If you're looking for something new to watch, may I suggest a short documentary I made two years before Silverlake Life, also about a person with AIDS. In he says at one point, "Maybe I'm going to die. But I'm still going to live until I do." I wish you serenity. ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html
@@peterfriedman7193 Holy shit you're the director. What an honor to have you commenting on here. I saw this film as an undergrad and it changed my life. No other document I encountered at the time was able to confront the horrors of AIDS while still conferring dignity on the sufferers.
@@SuperRobertoClemente Thank you for your beautiful comment. But I'm not exactly "the" director - it was Tom's idea, Tom's story, and Tom's courage (Mark's too). I completed it because I saw in it an opportunity to make a good film which was also a needed, in-your-face outcry. I'm always grateful to hear from people like you who have been affected by it. It is still in distribution, streaming, etc. after all these years. Cheers.
@@peterfriedman7193 Important point-- do you think the entire project is best characterized as an act of care, first by two lovers afflicted with the disease, and then by you? I actually came across this video doing background research on the film SAFE, by Todd Haynes, a vastly different film, but one that is also about AIDS in this very bleak era. You share a name with one of the key actors. Did you feel at that time that there was a shared community of filmmakers in very different genres who were trying to discuss the pandemic from different angles?
@@peterfriedman7193 Another film (video) I think of from that period is Marlon Riggs' BLACK IS, BLACK AIN'T, which also had to be completed by others after his death. I don't think, as a country, we ever processed the scale or outrage of this catastrophe-- and our shameful response to Covid proves that.
thank you so much for this footage and truly, thank you for putting out silverlake life. these films trigger so many emotions but show the real life of these men. i hope you are doing well now and i hope you recognize how much good you have done by sharing all of the footage that you have. you are an amazing soul.
Thank you for your comment! Right before I completed Silverlake Life, I made a short film on a similar subject, which is here: ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html
Through this and the original documentary Mark will ironically live forever. Both Mark and Tom have left us with the gift of love and to ensure that we make the most of the time that we have with our loved ones. No doubt they are still dancing together from above...
Peter thank you...I lost a wonderful man to aids...he danced for joffrey ballet company... I was attending the north Carolina school of the arts at the same time..that's where we met... my god I miss him....I have his book.. It looks like mark is wearing Tom's glasses.... I wish I could have known them.... I have a medical problem with my heart...it's a virus called myocarditis...they are considering using some cocktails on me to battle the virus....it's had a heart attack too....so if these med don't help...it's have something huge to face.... MD also wants infections disease to get involved. I'm terrified... I can still play bass a little. I was a disco baby..soul train got me into music.... Anyway I've subscribed to you... It hurts me I see young men in 2019 not be careful. I feel like I've become a father figure to a few friends who were born after 95 96...I worked aids task force back in 94....sat with a very sick man and we worked the phones... So your work and Tom and marks legacy mean a lot to me, I grew up in the arts since day one...so tho I don't know them...I relate to them.. Thank you Peter. Damian
Dear Damian, Thank you for your moving comment. You can contact me if you wish through my website www.strange-attractions.com (where you'll also find details on the films - descriptions , press quotes, etc.) Meanwhile, I've 4 other films to recommend, two of mine and 2 I'm not connect to: First is short I did right before Silverlake, also about a gay couple with AIDS ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html Next, just because you're a musician, you may find this one entertaining ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html Two great AIDS documentaries I have no connection to are "How to Survive a Plague" available on Amazon and elsewhere www.amazon.com/How-Survive-Plague-Bill-Bahlman/dp/B00B03D5HQ and "We Were Here" vimeo.com/ondemand/wewerehere I wish you the best of health (the only way to fully escape the kind of health problems you're having is to die young...) and, perhaps most important, serenity.
We owe much to the early victims of AIDS. These two guys really do teach us what love is all about. These tapes show how important it is to enjoy every split second of our lives. Their death sentence did not seem to stop them from enjoying their lives and cherish every moment together, because this is what life is all about. As hard as it may seem, through pain only we get to understand what really matters, not all the things we run after. They are martyrs and we should be grateful to them for the message they sent us by sacrificing their own lives. That is what Jesus also did, so it is no surprise he told us that we can find Him in every needing being. Thank you Tom and Mark. I only got to know you through these films, but I love you from the bottom of my heart. Now I know I have two friends in heaven.
Heartbreaking to see Mark like this after seeing Silverlake Life, I knew Mark would suffer the same fate but his appearance is just so much worse in the Epilogue. Rest in peace Tom and Mark, and thank you Peter for releasing this.
@@josephclarke645 Hi Joseph. By "alone" I meant Tom was gone. His closest friends lived in other cities and visited when they could. He had some local friends, and he was assisted by organizations which provided services like delivering meals and other kinds of help. I was living in Europe then so I don't have more details than that.
@@peterfriedman7193 Hi Peter. Thank you for your reply. That makes sense. It must have been heartbreaking for you when your friend took a turn for the worse when you were not in America. They are both such a loss to the world. These documentaries were so moving and powerful. Keep up the fantastic work. Joe in the UK
@@josephclarke645 Thank you for you comments. Mark & Tom were two of many...if you'd like to know more about how things got better, see this Oscar-nominated documentary (to which I've no connection): "How to Survive a Plague"
I am sure Tom and Mark are very proud of the work done, Silverlake Life is a heart-touching shocking, and amazing diary! beautiful shots and statements...Sometimes, I wish I never knew the ending! I love Tom and Mark without meeting them! Thank you very much Peter for completing this project in such a caring way!
Thank you for your very moving comment. People often think I completed this film FOR Mark & Tom, but I mainly did it because I saw in the material I inherited the potential to say something that badly needed to be said - especially back in 1992, when it seemed like no one cared.
@@peterfriedman7193 you hit your target. I am not American and I already felt sorry for the medical system, people's mentalities, social care, and lots of other details that are being pointed out in this diary! It is surprising to see systems and people still sometimes think and do the same! very well done.
@@reihanehfeiz2080 I'm American but have been living in Europe for a very long time. I'd like to retire to the US, but I can't afford health care there.
@@peterfriedman7193 I live in the Netherlands, social services here are good, however, as I said, manipulation, mentality, and bios are always part of the society...
Just prior to my first trip to see my cousin after his diagnosis an aunt told me “ be careful...don’t catch it” I wanted to tell her I was only visiting and had no plans to have sex with him.
Peter Friedman perhaps ?? it’s because of how drastically different newer treatments became in the years just after both Tom& Mark passed ? The newer regimes/ cocktails that begun changing life expectancy around I think 1995 perhaps. I could have the date wrong. Because of my surprise I didn’t say it earlier but “ Thank God!”
I have a couple friends who both have AIDS. Male married couple, 25+ years. The drug regimens have improved significantly, though I can still see their suffering on occasion. Hopefully in time we can make this terrible illness a thing of the past.
What a horrible illness just watch the main documentary very sad indeed. $68 for a meds im so happy i live in the UK where health care is free. For a country as rich as states they could if they wanted to start a NHS like the UK health care should always be free its a human right. Did mark die alone 😔
I just noticed Mark was wearing Tom’s eyeglasses. But anyway...What a sad ending to a very beautiful love story! Sometimes closure is more painful than not knowing!
Peter Friedman You’re welcome! You know it’s funny I had this weird little dream about Mark last night when I dozed off on the couch for a few minutes. I don’t know why ! I’ve never met him! But the very short dream was completely in black and white..Mark looked thin but had No KS whatsoever on his skin! And it was almost like it was in some kind of interview setting where I was a 3rd person observing. I can’t remember word for word what he said but it had something to do with even when him and Tom had a brand new love and everything was new and exciting they still got very annoyed with each other! I’m not saying that’s an absolute or it’s true in any kind of way...but that was the message he seemed to get across. The plot twist of the dream however was Tom wasn’t there. And Mark still talked about him in a past tense. I’m not a psychic or paranormal communicator..I’m really just a guy who works as a baker but I’ve had throughout my life several memorable dreams involving those who have passed on and this was just one of them.So I hope you’ve enjoyed this extremely unusual comment and thank you for sharing your films with us!
“Sometimes closure is more painful than not knowing”. I’m just now realizing how tacky that sounds. I guess when you approach it loosely it shows a lack of appreciation for the additional footage that we all anticipated. I certainly didn’t mean it that way. I think I was just more concerned about sounding clever than appreciative and that was my first mistake . So leaving no stone unturned Thank you for allowing us to have one last visit with Mark! He truly was a very dedicated and loving man ! Jason
A work of f art , the only good feeling I get from this is knowing that these two innocent men is no longer in pain and heartache and I hope that they are together somewhere there is no more sadness and pain , I feel like they are dancing in heaven cause that’s where they deserve to be
Peter, would you happen to know the titles of the 2 books Elaine mentioned that Bo published? I'd look them up myself but I don't know his last name. I'm not even sure if I heard his first name, Bo, correctly. Thank you so much for posting both this and the actual documentary 👍
It takes a lot to get me emotional! My god the Silverlake Life documentary and now this really tore me up! such a powerful reflection on the true horror of Aids but also the love between two souls.
Love is beautiful between 2 brothers or friends but please leave the anal sex and intimacy alone. No need for that. That is not love but it is something else. God help us all
I was moved by both the film and his harrowing epilogue. Do you know anything else about Beau or Bo, the young man who takes center stage near the end of the video? Elaine mentions that he wrote some novels before his death which I would be curious if anyone has read them.
Bo Huston has several books listed on Amazon www.amazon.com/s?k=bo+huston&i=stripbooks&crid=1K41EGYF9IM4B&sprefix=bo+huston%2Cstripbooks%2C423&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
@@nikicarrie4071En 1993, quand Tom est décédé des suites du sida,Mark était aussi atteint du sida et l'espérance de vie en moyenne à l'époque avec le sida déclaré (avec l'apparition de la première maladie opportuniste) était de 2 ans, certains plus mais pas beaucoup plus. Donc Mark est parti 1 an après Tom. Donc c'était sûr qu'il allait décéder relativement rapidement
How long after Tom died did Mark die ? I Thought it said a friend was with Mark the night he Died, I'm so sad if this is true as we seen with Tom there was many around when he passed, God bless you !
@@peterfriedman7193 was mark by himself ?And thank you the documentary had me crying. And smiling I hope he wasn't alone . They love was so beautiful to watch....An thank you for added footage of mark thank you elaine ❤❤❤❤
@@peterfriedman7193 Im kinda numb and sad . But thank you for finishing an uploading the movie . I love the dancing part . As a member of the lgbtq community. You and Tom did amazing and thank elaine as well.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Please taken this as a loving messages , Jesus the sacrificial lamb and the only son of God, gave his life voluntarily to save us from Gods righteous judgement and wrath , he took up our sins ( lying, stealing, sex before marriage, other sexual immoralities, hating, homosexuality, murder, idolatry ) and die on he cross so we would be save from God righteous judgement. We deserve God judgement and wrath because of our sinful ways, but because of God love for us he sent his son Jesus to die on the cross for us, so that we may be forgiven, and be with him and have eternal life. Please Repent, deny yourself , take up your cross and fellow him, he is faithful and just to forgive us of all our John 3:16For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 1 John 1:9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.❤
@@bryanbradley6871 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. Please taken this as a loving messages , Jesus the sacrificial lamb and the only son of God, gave his life voluntarily to save us from Gods righteous judgement and wrath , he took up our sins ( lying, stealing, sex before marriage, other sexual immoralities, hating, homosexuality, murder, idolatry ) and die on he cross so we would be save from God righteous judgement. We deserve God judgement and wrath because of our sinful ways, but because of God love for us he sent his son Jesus to die on the cross for us, so that we may be forgiven, and be with him and have eternal life. Please Repent, deny yourself , take up your cross and fellow him, he is faithful and just to forgive us of all our John 3:16For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 1 John 1:9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.❤
The most powerful documentary I've ever seen in my entire life. I'm forever moved
Just found the epilogue for the first time. So grateful to have some sense of closure for Mark. Though he never knew me, I’ve had the pleasure of knowing him.
I first watched Silverlake Life in 2017 and I just finished watching again it tonight. This is the first time that I watch the epilogue. For the longest time I wondered what had happened to Mark. Who was with him? Did it happen in that house? It took awhile for me to stop thinking about it because it just made me so sad. Seeing and hearing Mark in this footage answered the questions but left me feeling numb. Thank you Mr. Friedman for sharing all of this humanity with us.
I don't know how to make people understand how meaningful comments like yours are to me. Thank you. Mark stayed in that house and he had a small support system, 2 or 3 friends and AIDS and social service organizations. His closest friends did not live in Los Angeles and so saw him infrequently. I don't know if he died at home or in a hospital or hospice.
@@peterfriedman7193 I wish he had someone with him
@@peterfriedman7193 so heartbreaking.
This and the original documentary are so beautiful. Thank you Peter for putting tom and marks story out into the world for me and everyone to see. Very touching.
Beautiful???? Seeing 2 ugly, gay, aids patients covered in gross ks, die is beautiful???? It’s disgusting. I feel sorry for their families, but not them, they engaged in the very behaviors that caused them to get aids, so that’s what they get. If that’s harsh, oh well. Don’t do risky shit and you should be ok. I’ll never die from a parachuting accident because I don’t go parachuting. Not gonna die from a heroin (or any drug) overdose cuz I don’t mess with drugs.
This beautiful sweet man must have lived in so much pain.
Thanks again!! Peter
This was an absolute amazing film. I’ve probably watched it 10 times over the past month and it’s just amazing because it pulls every emotion out of me when I watch it. I love how candid it is and how you just can feel the love between Tom and Mark. It’s so incredibly sad that strides for HIV and AIDS were still pretty far away at the time of the filming process. I hope this film raises more awareness. Thank you Peter.
Thank you for your beautiful comment. When you get a chance, you might also like the short film I made right before I completed Silverlake Life, FIGHTING IN SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA: ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html
Mark was so brave. Bless him.
Ive watched SilverLake Life so many times.....to see Mark .....is just as heartbreaking! This is the most moving documentary Ive ever seen ❤ They have to be extremely proud of how the film turned out!
No debería de haber ninguna persona q no hubiera visto éste documental tan valioso. silverlake life
I watched both documentaries and seeing mark deteriorating like this is just wow…how much pain could that poor man have been in?
😭😰❤
That you see my friend truly shows how horrifying and tragic AIDS was back then. Just to see these people die looking almost like skeletons having lost so much weight is absolutely tragic and scary.
Films like this were essential for confronting what it was to live with AIDS before medication. I think it's important that the choice to show these horrors was that of the people we see on screen. For me, it's of a piece with Derek Jarman's BLUE, which is the complete opposite-- echoing the director's blindness because of the disease, the entire film is only sound with a blue screen, its account of this plague told only in words.
Hard to see his suffering, thanks for sharing us the last piece of Silverlake.
The art of life. The art of filming it. The art of puting it together. Thank you so much to all of you. Huge humanity lesson. Straight to the heart and brain.
As beautiful and sad as a Leonard Cohen song. Made me think about that sentence in «Chelsea hotel»: «i can t keep track of any fallen robin». Well, sometimes u can, and it definetely gives so much inner strength to others. I consider i can fly higher after seeing this, whatever life will bring me, this will remain forever the living proof of the courage and dignity and cleverness human beings can have in hard times. It gives hope.
So thank you.
(And as i read u re somewhere in France, greetings from across the border, that funny little country called Belgium)
I can't thank you enough for your very moving and insightful comments. They are among the most rewarding parts of what I do.
@@peterfriedman7193 @Peter Friedman well u just did, and more! and it means a lot to me too. Thank you for your very nice answer.
I hope u ll find funds to raise, in these «after covid» times...One of my friends just had to stop producing them. Hard times for film makers, among other «reality» witnesses...
Wish you the best!
Silverlake is probably the best film I’ve ever watched. I always wondered tho, Mark and Tom were together for 20 years which would have been pre-HIV when they met, so how did they contract the disease? Unless they were in an open relationship which doesn’t make sense, they seemed like a proper old couple if that sounds right…
Few, if any, gay couples were monogamous in the 70's and 80'.
@@peterfriedman7193 ah ok. Thank you for responding. I lost my own brother to AIDS thirty years ago, and every time I watch Silverlake I’m struck by how much Mark took a pro-active stance to fighting his illness, whereas Tom seemed to be the passive one. and yet Mark was diagnosed earlier and lived longer. It’s tragic to think of how many people this insidious disease affected, Mark and Tom were very obviously intelligent and likeable people, you did such a fantastic job of capturing their personalities in the film.
Thank you. Tom wasn't passive in life but the diagnosis triggered a depression from which he never recovered. He knew his dreams would never be fulfilled, so he lost his will to fight. @@Dia_7hom
@@peterfriedman7193 Peter, your last comment was possibly the most heartbreaking thing I’ve read in a long time. Looking back I think my brother fell into a similar mindset. He was gregarious, warm, funny, incredibly talented and people would gravitate towards him, purely because his positivity and energy was like a shot of serotonin. His diagnosis took away his personality, slowly but noticeably. Towards the end we were just grateful - selfishly - that he had lived another day. My other brother, his twin, took over the role of the peppy one and told him they had to reach their 30th birthday together and jokingly warned him not to die before that. Their birthday is August 2nd and he died May 23rd, never got to see his 30th. I’m telling you this because our family is very much like Tom’s family, and by bringing them into the film, showing their visit to the country club and hinting of their middle class social status you made it very obvious that HIV/AIDS isn’t just something that the down and outs are likely to have, it’s indiscriminate and that came across really well in the film. I do hope Tom’s mother got the support she must have needed after losing Tom, then growing close to Mark and losing him too. I got the impression that she was overwhelmed by learning of Tom’s sexuality, then his diagnosis, and it was as if it was almost too much for her to process. Sorry for rambling, but this is a subject close to my heart, and also I’m sure I’m not the only one who grew to love Tom and Mark in the film
I can't count the number of times I have watched Silverlake Life.... now I have something new to watch. I would watch any other footage as well. So grateful that Tom and Mark opened up their lives to us. I am going through stage 4 cancer and that's not anything like AIDS. But there's lots of pain and sickness. With modern medicine, AIDS has sort of been put into the realm of "chronic" but it is so expensive to treat and the victims are still very sick and in pain. People don't always "get" that.
I'm sorry to hear you're ill. I appreciate your comment and am glad you appreciate the film so much. If you're looking for something new to watch, may I suggest a short documentary I made two years before Silverlake Life, also about a person with AIDS. In he says at one point, "Maybe I'm going to die. But I'm still going to live until I do." I wish you serenity. ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html
@@peterfriedman7193 Holy shit you're the director. What an honor to have you commenting on here. I saw this film as an undergrad and it changed my life. No other document I encountered at the time was able to confront the horrors of AIDS while still conferring dignity on the sufferers.
@@SuperRobertoClemente Thank you for your beautiful comment. But I'm not exactly "the" director - it was Tom's idea, Tom's story, and Tom's courage (Mark's too). I completed it because I saw in it an opportunity to make a good film which was also a needed, in-your-face outcry. I'm always grateful to hear from people like you who have been affected by it. It is still in distribution, streaming, etc. after all these years. Cheers.
@@peterfriedman7193 Important point-- do you think the entire project is best characterized as an act of care, first by two lovers afflicted with the disease, and then by you?
I actually came across this video doing background research on the film SAFE, by Todd Haynes, a vastly different film, but one that is also about AIDS in this very bleak era. You share a name with one of the key actors. Did you feel at that time that there was a shared community of filmmakers in very different genres who were trying to discuss the pandemic from different angles?
@@peterfriedman7193 Another film (video) I think of from that period is Marlon Riggs' BLACK IS, BLACK AIN'T, which also had to be completed by others after his death.
I don't think, as a country, we ever processed the scale or outrage of this catastrophe-- and our shameful response to Covid proves that.
thank you so much for this footage and truly, thank you for putting out silverlake life. these films trigger so many emotions but show the real life of these men. i hope you are doing well now and i hope you recognize how much good you have done by sharing all of the footage that you have. you are an amazing soul.
Thank you for your comment! Right before I completed Silverlake Life, I made a short film on a similar subject, which is here: ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html
Through this and the original documentary Mark will ironically live forever. Both Mark and Tom have left us with the gift of love and to ensure that we make the most of the time that we have with our loved ones. No doubt they are still dancing together from above...
Peter thank you...I lost a wonderful man to aids...he danced for joffrey ballet company...
I was attending the north Carolina school of the arts at the same time..that's where we met... my god I miss him....I have his book..
It looks like mark is wearing Tom's glasses.... I wish I could have known them.... I have a medical problem with my heart...it's a virus called myocarditis...they are considering using some cocktails on me to battle the virus....it's had a heart attack too....so if these med don't help...it's have something huge to face....
MD also wants infections disease to get involved. I'm terrified...
I can still play bass a little. I was a disco baby..soul train got me into music....
Anyway I've subscribed to you...
It hurts me I see young men in 2019 not be careful. I feel like I've become a father figure to a few friends who were born after 95 96...I worked aids task force back in 94....sat with a very sick man and we worked the phones...
So your work and Tom and marks legacy mean a lot to me, I grew up in the arts since day one...so tho I don't know them...I relate to them..
Thank you Peter.
Damian
Dear Damian, Thank you for your moving comment. You can contact me if you wish through my website www.strange-attractions.com (where you'll also find details on the films - descriptions , press quotes, etc.) Meanwhile, I've 4 other films to recommend, two of mine and 2 I'm not connect to: First is short I did right before Silverlake, also about a gay couple with AIDS ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html
Next, just because you're a musician, you may find this one entertaining ua-cam.com/video/CpvebSvYTFs/v-deo.html
Two great AIDS documentaries I have no connection to are "How to Survive a Plague" available on Amazon and elsewhere www.amazon.com/How-Survive-Plague-Bill-Bahlman/dp/B00B03D5HQ
and "We Were Here" vimeo.com/ondemand/wewerehere
I wish you the best of health (the only way to fully escape the kind of health problems you're having is to die young...) and, perhaps most important, serenity.
Where can I watch Blackstar?
We owe much to the early victims of AIDS.
These two guys really do teach us what love is all about.
These tapes show how important it is to enjoy every split second of our lives.
Their death sentence did not seem to stop them from enjoying their lives and cherish every moment together, because this is what life is all about.
As hard as it may seem, through pain only we get to understand what really matters, not all the things we run after.
They are martyrs and we should be grateful to them for the message they sent us by sacrificing their own lives.
That is what Jesus also did, so it is no surprise he told us that we can find Him in every needing being.
Thank you Tom and Mark.
I only got to know you through these films, but I love you from the bottom of my heart.
Now I know I have two friends in heaven.
Although they found a new drug for HIV/AIDS victims they discovered it too late for Tom and Mark
Heartbreaking to see Mark like this after seeing Silverlake Life, I knew Mark would suffer the same fate but his appearance is just so much worse in the Epilogue.
Rest in peace Tom and Mark, and thank you Peter for releasing this.
He was also alone...
@@peterfriedman7193 Hi Peter. Mark seems quite popular in silverlake life, did he really die alone?
@@josephclarke645 Hi Joseph. By "alone" I meant Tom was gone. His closest friends lived in other cities and visited when they could. He had some local friends, and he was assisted by organizations which provided services like delivering meals and other kinds of help. I was living in Europe then so I don't have more details than that.
@@peterfriedman7193 Hi Peter. Thank you for your reply. That makes sense. It must have been heartbreaking for you when your friend took a turn for the worse when you were not in America. They are both such a loss to the world. These documentaries were so moving and powerful. Keep up the fantastic work. Joe in the UK
@@josephclarke645 Thank you for you comments. Mark & Tom were two of many...if you'd like to know more about how things got better, see this Oscar-nominated documentary (to which I've no connection): "How to Survive a Plague"
I am sure Tom and Mark are very proud of the work done, Silverlake Life is a heart-touching shocking, and amazing diary! beautiful shots and statements...Sometimes, I wish I never knew the ending! I love Tom and Mark without meeting them! Thank you very much Peter for completing this project in such a caring way!
Thank you for your very moving comment. People often think I completed this film FOR Mark & Tom, but I mainly did it because I saw in the material I inherited the potential to say something that badly needed to be said - especially back in 1992, when it seemed like no one cared.
@@peterfriedman7193 you hit your target. I am not American and I already felt sorry for the medical system, people's mentalities, social care, and lots of other details that are being pointed out in this diary! It is surprising to see systems and people still sometimes think and do the same! very well done.
@@reihanehfeiz2080 I'm American but have been living in Europe for a very long time. I'd like to retire to the US, but I can't afford health care there.
@@peterfriedman7193 I live in the Netherlands, social services here are good, however, as I said, manipulation, mentality, and bios are always part of the society...
Thanks for uploading this. I just finished watching Tom's film and saw your comment on there that Mark's journey was here.
thank you for posting this
Would love more on tom and mark. Silverlake Life is amazing.
Here's more: BLACKSTAR from 1976. vimeo.com/690199560/deabd31836
@@peterfriedman7193 finding you is like a dream come true. I had seen Longtime Companion short before Silverlake Life. Been obsessed ever since.
Peter, thank you so much. I hope you are at peace. Thank you for helping them finish such an important thing to them, and to the world ❤️
Thank you for your comment!
Peter,
I think this footage and possibly footage for a documentary featuring one other patient shows exactly what KS actually does to someone.
Just prior to my first trip to see my cousin after his diagnosis an aunt told me “ be careful...don’t catch it” I wanted to tell her I was only visiting and had no plans to have sex with him.
KS mysteriously disappeared, in the West, anyway.
Peter Friedman it did ?
Peter Friedman perhaps ?? it’s because of how drastically different newer treatments became in the years just after both Tom& Mark passed ? The newer regimes/ cocktails that begun changing life expectancy around I think 1995 perhaps. I could have the date wrong.
Because of my surprise I didn’t say it earlier but “ Thank God!”
I have a couple friends who both have AIDS. Male married couple, 25+ years. The drug regimens have improved significantly, though I can still see their suffering on occasion. Hopefully in time we can make this terrible illness a thing of the past.
Rip to bo also as well as everyone else affected by this horrible disease
❤
What a horrible illness just watch the main documentary very sad indeed. $68 for a meds im so happy i live in the UK where health care is free. For a country as rich as states they could if they wanted to start a NHS like the UK health care should always be free its a human right. Did mark die alone 😔
You are gorgeous
$68 was just for the thrush mouthwash, a month of meds cost $1400 apparently.
Aids foi a doença mais devastadora do Século XX.
For too many of us, yes.
I just noticed Mark was wearing Tom’s eyeglasses. But anyway...What a sad ending to a very beautiful love story! Sometimes closure is more painful than not knowing!
Thank you for your very astute comment.
Peter Friedman You’re welcome! You know it’s funny I had this weird little dream about Mark last night when I dozed off on the couch for a few minutes. I don’t know why ! I’ve never met him! But the very short dream was completely in black and white..Mark looked thin but had No KS whatsoever on his skin! And it was almost like it was in some kind of interview setting where I was a 3rd person observing. I can’t remember word for word what he said but it had something to do with even when him and Tom had a brand new love and everything was new and exciting they still got very annoyed with each other! I’m not saying that’s an absolute or it’s true in any kind of way...but that was the message he seemed to get across. The plot twist of the dream however was Tom wasn’t there. And Mark still talked about him in a past tense. I’m not a psychic or paranormal communicator..I’m really just a guy who works as a baker but I’ve had throughout my life several memorable dreams involving those who have passed on and this was just one of them.So I hope you’ve enjoyed this extremely unusual comment and thank you for sharing your films with us!
@@jasonwhite7452 You're welcome Jason, I had a similar dream once...
“Sometimes closure is more painful than not knowing”. I’m just now realizing how tacky that sounds. I guess when you approach it loosely it shows a lack of appreciation for the additional footage that we all anticipated. I certainly didn’t mean it that way. I think I was just more concerned about sounding clever than appreciative and that was my first mistake . So leaving no stone unturned Thank you for allowing us to have one last visit with Mark! He truly was a very dedicated and loving man ! Jason
Jason White he’s also wearing his hat, the one he wore to Hard Times pizza
A work of f art , the only good feeling I get from this is knowing that these two innocent men is no longer in pain and heartache and I hope that they are together somewhere there is no more sadness and pain , I feel like they are dancing in heaven cause that’s where they deserve to be
Peter, would you happen to know the titles of the 2 books Elaine mentioned that Bo published? I'd look them up myself but I don't know his last name. I'm not even sure if I heard his first name, Bo, correctly. Thank you so much for posting both this and the actual documentary 👍
His name was Bo Huston www.amazon.com/s?k=bo+huston&crid=1DUW8UZ5JJS1X&sprefix=bo+huston%2Caps%2C152&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_1_9
What happened to the dog
At the end of silverlake Life it shows a memorial service. Was it theirs combined?
No, Mark was at the service but he didn't speak.
It takes a lot to get me emotional! My god the Silverlake Life documentary and now this really tore me up! such a powerful reflection on the true horror of Aids but also the love between two souls.
Great 👍 comment
Love is beautiful between 2 brothers or friends but please leave the anal sex and intimacy alone. No need for that. That is not love but it is something else. God help us all
I was moved by both the film and his harrowing epilogue. Do you know anything else about Beau or Bo, the young man who takes center stage near the end of the video? Elaine mentions that he wrote some novels before his death which I would be curious if anyone has read them.
Bo Huston has several books listed on Amazon www.amazon.com/s?k=bo+huston&i=stripbooks&crid=1K41EGYF9IM4B&sprefix=bo+huston%2Cstripbooks%2C423&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
He died too ?😢
@@peterfriedman7193 that's amazing
@@nikicarrie4071En 1993, quand Tom est décédé des suites du sida,Mark était aussi atteint du sida et l'espérance de vie en moyenne à l'époque avec le sida déclaré (avec l'apparition de la première maladie opportuniste) était de 2 ans, certains plus mais pas beaucoup plus. Donc Mark est parti 1 an après Tom. Donc c'était sûr qu'il allait décéder relativement rapidement
@renayud6659 I don't speak this language I wish I knew what you said
How long after Tom died did Mark die ? I Thought it said a friend was with Mark the night he Died, I'm so sad if this is true as we seen with Tom there was many around when he passed, God bless you !
Mark died about a year after Tom died.
@@peterfriedman7193 Ty following your work very talented !
@@peterfriedman7193 was mark by himself ?And thank you the documentary had me crying. And smiling I hope he wasn't alone . They love was so beautiful to watch....An thank you for added footage of mark thank you elaine ❤❤❤❤
@@Damami4U Mark was pretty much alone, although not entirely.
@@peterfriedman7193 Im kinda numb and sad . But thank you for finishing an uploading the movie . I love the dancing part . As a member of the lgbtq community. You and Tom did amazing and thank elaine as well.
This epilogue cuts off rather abruptly at the end. Is there a second part?
No that's all there is.
This is the scariest shit I ever scene. How did I end up here
"Ever saw". I agree -- very scary.
So sad... This should be shown in schools
The epilogue was a "bonus extra" on the DVD but was never broadcast.
@peter Any companion book?
Working on one now.
@@peterfriedman7193 awesome. Thank you!
They are all in heaven.
❤
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Please taken this as a loving messages , Jesus the sacrificial lamb and the only son of God, gave his life voluntarily to save us from Gods righteous judgement and wrath , he took up our sins ( lying, stealing, sex before marriage, other sexual immoralities, hating, homosexuality, murder, idolatry ) and die on he cross so we would be save from God righteous judgement. We deserve God judgement and wrath because of our sinful ways, but because of God love for us he sent his son Jesus to die on the cross for us, so that we may be forgiven, and be with him and have eternal life. Please Repent, deny yourself , take up your cross and fellow him, he is faithful and just to forgive us of all our
John 3:16For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
1 John 1:9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.❤
Do you think Allah will allow?
@@bryanbradley6871 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
Please taken this as a loving messages , Jesus the sacrificial lamb and the only son of God, gave his life voluntarily to save us from Gods righteous judgement and wrath , he took up our sins ( lying, stealing, sex before marriage, other sexual immoralities, hating, homosexuality, murder, idolatry ) and die on he cross so we would be save from God righteous judgement. We deserve God judgement and wrath because of our sinful ways, but because of God love for us he sent his son Jesus to die on the cross for us, so that we may be forgiven, and be with him and have eternal life. Please Repent, deny yourself , take up your cross and fellow him, he is faithful and just to forgive us of all our
John 3:16For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
1 John 1:9If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.❤
@@bryanbradley6871 Exodus 20: 3 "You shall have no other gods before a me.
How brave of Mark and Tom to do this ❤
Very hard watch. Rip to both.
Is Blackstar available to watch?
Blackstar is here vimeo.com/209640111
This took me back to my time as an RN in the 80s. It was tough.
That poor guy RIP to him and Tom
Mark had a good taste in automobiles.
80's Ford Mustang & El Camino with Canopy.
16:13
REST IN PARADISE BO
✝