Fruitbowl: An Oral History of Queer Sex Qubed Media, LLC

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Who was your first crush? That first intense infatuation with someone special? A famous actor? A singer? An Athlete? Or was it someone you knew like another student at your school, a hot neighbor or a teacher who gave you extra attention? Whoever it was, first crushes are often the first indication that we have queer tendencies. This can be validating but also a little scary.

In case you’re a size queen and want an extra long version of this episode, our Patreon subscribers will get exclusive access to the UNCUT version of this episode that is 30 minutes longer and includes every single response to Dave’s questions about crushes. Learn more at Fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate.

Dave did not include each person’s personal introductions in this episode, but here is a list with links to their full length episodes in case you want to learn more.   So sit back and enjoy this Crush Parade!

Cold Open; Anders (S2E6) Robin Hood & Maid Marion; Jerry (S1E4) Dukes of Hazard; Lee (S1E4) Fat Camp Love.

Section 1: Fictional Characters; Justin (S4E1) Superhero Nipples and Bulges; Isabella (S2E9) Tommy the Green Power Ranger; Mike (S3E19) Tommy & Chris O’Donnell.

Section 2: Famous People; Carlos (S1E2) Peter Lupus; Aditya (S2E2) Tom Selleck; Breona (S4E18) Jonathan Taylor Thomas; RC (S2E8) Buffy; Karilla (S3E15) Sarah Michelle Gellar; Dan (S3E16) - Mary Stewart Masterson; Sam (S1E1) Leo and Johnny; Ari (S4E3) Mariah.

Section 3: Personal Crushes; Alan (S3E2) The Boy With the Earring; Ji (S2E5) Playing Hercules; Karilla (S3E15) Hot for Teacher; Debra (S4E8) Flute Girl; Dave (S4E15) Son of a Preacher Man; Saira (S3E21) Surprise Pansexuality; Nathan S. (S3E13) Quarterback Fantasies; Donovan (S3E18) The Dork.

Section 4: Coworkers, Acquaintances; Debra (S4E8) Beth’s Abortion; Tyler (S1E6) McDonald’s Manager.

This episode was edited by Dave Quantic, the creator of Fruitbowl.  Hosted by Ryan Weadon who also did the music editing and final mix. Thanks Ryan!

Fruitbowl is produced independently without corporate media infrastructure or full time staff. Every interview is recorded in-person, on location in each interviewee’s home and production expenses including travel, accommodations, equipment rental are paid for out of pocket by Dave Quantic, FRUITBOWL’s creator. 

The only consistent financial support comes from Fruitbowl’s Patreon community. A minimum $5 monthly donation allows patrons early access to episodes, behind the scenes updates and Salad Tosser tier patrons ($10/mo.) receive access to exclusive video content that is not available to the general public. Learn more about how to become a patron at: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Larger donations and underwriting/sponsorship fees are 100% tax deductible through a partnership with Northwest Film Forum’s fiscal sponsorship program.  FRUITBOWL RECEIVES NO DIRECT FUNDING FROM NWFF, only the use of their non-profit status to receive tax deductible donations. For more information check out: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Tell your friends about Fruitbowl, rate us on your podcast platform or write a review on Apple Podcast. Every little bit helps. And, of course you can also follow us, for now, on Instagram and Tik Tok at fruitbowlpodcast.

Fruitbowl’s fruit artwork for Season 5 was created by Nathan Richards of Paperwombat.

The artwork for this episode was created by Alegra Figeroid.

Help support independent queer media. Get exclusive access to an UNCUT version of this episode with more than 30 extra minutes of stories by joining Fruitbowl’s Patreon community. Learn more at fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate Listen on Apple Podcasts  Listen on Spotify. Note: the descriptions of this episode were altered to avoid censorship by the major podcast platforms.

America’s puritanical roots are never more exposed than they are when the subject of "self-love" is discussed or, more often, avoided by schools and parents. Some religions explicitly discourage it. But when it comes to our coming of age years, coming is often top of mind and a favored topic in the backs of school buses, online chats and locker rooms.  

"Self-love" is an intensely personal experience that can often reveal our sexual preferences producing euphoria as well as deep personal shame.  This episode features stories about "self-love" and the stew of emotions it often conjures up as well as some awkward social situations.

Here's a list of the interviewees whose stories are featured along with links to their original, full interviews.

Cold Open: Sam (S1E1) School yard talk. 

Section 1: "Self-love" as experienced by AFAB interviewees (Assigned Female at Birth). Anders (S2E6), Elliott (S3E11), Isabella (S2E9), Ji (S2E5). Check out my short film, MORE THAN A FEELING. https://vimeo.com/790585520

Section 2: Furry Innovations. Dan (S3E16) Homemade female anatomy; Karilla (S3E15) CD Rack Love.

Section 3: Stuffed Animal Lovin’. Andrew (S4E11) My Little Buddy; RC (S2E8) Teddy Bear.

Section 4: Swimming Pool Jets. Breona (S4E18) Like a little starfish.

Section 5: With a Little Help From Friends. Mike B. (S4E10) Friendly Circle.

Section 6: Puddin’s Cousin. Puddin (S4E9).Section 7: "Self-love" and self-discovery. Adam (S2E3) Bullying, self-acceptance and self-love; Adam T. (S3E20) sometimes the journey is better than the destination.

This episode was edited by Dave Quantic, the creator of Fruitbowl.  Music editing and final mix by Ryan Weadon.

Fruitbowl is produced independently without corporate media infrastructure or full time staff. Every interview is recorded in-person, on location in each interviewee’s home and production expenses including travel, accommodations, equipment rental are paid for out of pocket by Dave Quantic, FRUITBOWL’s creator. 

The only consistent financial support comes from Fruitbowl’s Patreon community. A minimum $5 monthly donation allows patrons early access to episodes, behind the scenes updates and Salad Tosser tier patrons ($10/mo.) receive access to exclusive video content that is not available to the general public. Learn more about how to become a patron at: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Larger donations and underwriting/sponsorship fees are 100% tax deductible through a partnership with Northwest Film Forum’s fiscal sponsorship program.  FRUITBOWL RECEIVES NO DIRECT FUNDING FROM NWFF, only the use of their non-profit status to receive tax deductible donations. For more information check out: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Tell your friends about Fruitbowl, rate us on your podcast platform or write a review on Apple Podcast. Every little bit helps. And, of course you can also follow us, for now, on Instagram and Tik Tok at fruitbowlpodcast.

Fruitbowl’s fruit artwork for Season 5 was created by Nathan Richards of Paperwombat.

The artwork for this episode was created by Alegra Figeroid.

Patreon members get exclusive access to an UNCUT version of this episode with 20 extra minutes of stories. Learn more at fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate Listen on Apple Podcasts  Listen on Spotify.

Many of us grew up in families and communities that never once acknowledged the existence of queer people: no exposure to queer authors, filmmakers, artists. Pornography is often the first media we see that acknowledges queer sexuality. In this episode, you will hear stories of pornography found under rocks, in dumpsters, behind medicine cabinets. Grainy, distorted porn that emerged from scrambled cable channels. Porn that validated feelings that may have been impossible to articulate. Porn that provided a starting point to begin deciding what turns us on and what doesn’t.

Here’s a list of the excerpts featured in this episode with links to the original, full length episodes: Section 1: The Porn Is Coming From Inside The House. Jason (S1E1) Dad’s Secret Porn Stash; Lee (S1E4) Medicine Cabinet Secrets; Section 2: Finding Porn. Alex (S3E10) Under A Rock; Adam T. (S3E20) Toni Braxton Did That?; Section 3: Erotic “Literature.” Kenny (S4E6) Michael & Michelle; Lilian (S4E5) Sexy Sci-Fi; Salvador (S3E6) Lingonberries; Section 4: Porn Theaters. Nayland (S2E4) Times Square Memories; Section 5: VHS Home Porn. James (S1E2) Daisy Chain Pool Party; Joshua (S2E7) Breaking & Entering; RC (S2E8) Amazon Girls of Go Go; Isabella (S2E9) High School Porn Vendor; Mikey (S1E10) Catholic School 8th Grade Grad Porn Party; Jerry (S1E4) Scrambled Grainy Porn Viewing; Jaelynn (S1E5) Emanuelle; Salvador (S3E6) Vegas Viewing. Section 6: The Internet Revolution. Sam (S1E1) Family Computer = No Privacy; Ryan (S1E11) Sex Can Be Anything; Aditya (S2E2) School Computer Porn; Breona (S4E18) Blame Little Brother; Gabe (S1E8) Three Strikes; Nathan S. (S3E13) Beware of White House Porn; Mike (S3E19) Finding Sister’s View History.

This episode was edited & mixed by Dave Quantic, the creator of Fruitbowl. 

Fruitbowl is produced independently without corporate media infrastructure or full time staff. Every interview is recorded in-person, on location in each interviewee’s home and production expenses including travel, accommodations, equipment rental are paid for out of pocket by Dave Quantic, FRUITBOWL’s creator. 

The only consistent financial support comes from Fruitbowl’s Patreon community. A minimum $5 monthly donation allows patrons early access to episodes, behind the scenes updates and Salad Tosser tier patrons ($10/mo.) receive access to exclusive video content that is not available to the general public. Learn more about how to become a patron at: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Larger donations and underwriting/sponsorship fees are 100% tax deductible through a partnership with Northwest Film Forum’s fiscal sponsorship program.  FRUITBOWL RECEIVES NO DIRECT FUNDING FROM NWFF, only the use of their non-profit status to receive tax deductible donations. For more information check out: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Tell your friends about Fruitbowl, rate us on your podcast platform or write a review on Apple Podcast. Every little bit helps. And, of course you can also follow us, for now, on Instagram and Tik Tok at fruitbowlpodcast.

Fruitbowl’s fruit artwork for Season 5 was created by Nathan Richards of Paperwombat.

Listen on Apple Podcasts  Listen on Spotify.

Now we’re getting down to the nitty gritty. For this first episode we’re going back to the beginning of our coming of age when we had no clue what sex was or what it even meant. Maybe we heard about it from our parents, our friends or maybe we even went to a library. Many of us got the wrong information or maybe it just didn’t make sense but whatever we learned we definitely wanted to know more.

Here’s a list of contributors for this episode along with links to their individual episodes. Section 1: Parental Explanations. Joshua G. (S2E7) Disgusted by sex; Puddin (S4E9) Fish sex; Andre (S3E17) Ponytail between legs; Salvador (S3E6) A logical parental explanation; Nathan (S3E14) Cool Mom. Section 2: The Failure of Family pt.1. Elliott (S3E11) Sibling abuse; Section 3: Book Learning. Ji (S2E5) Orange County education; Lee (S1E4) OMG, gametes; Lilian (S4E5) Parents leave book behind; The Cartoon Hippie Sex Book. Breona (S4E18), Sam (S1E1), Patrick (S3E12). Section 4: Our Parents Porn. Paul (S3E5) Bowling Alley Cruising; Nayland (S2E4) Sex adjacent household; Andrew (S4E11) Mom’s Erotic Art textbook; Section 5: School Yard Talk. Ji (S2E5) Moaning Sounds; Patrick (S3E12) Pennies and Vaginas; Jaelynn (S1E5) Barbershop talk; Pete (S1E13) What’s a BJ?; Karilla (S3E15) Debunking myths; Lilian (S4E5) Drawings in the dirt; Josh (S3E1) Prudish about sex; Section 5: The Failure of Family pt.2. Deaunte (S3E3) Babysitter violation. Section 6: School Mis-Education. Lizzie (S4E13) Seattle Catholic School; Anders (S2E6) Periods are still a thing?; Nathan S. (S3E13) Permission Slips; Isabella (S2E9) Dental dams; Saira (S3E21) A strange, cruel sex ed teacher;

Andre (S3E17) Imaginary Boyfriend Lowell; Drew (S4E4) Priest Sex Talk. Section 7: Pop Culture Sex Ed. Drew (S4E4) Look Who’s Talking Sex; Mikey (S1E10) Golden Girls Sex Ed; Lee (S1E4) Prison Sex on Oz; Ji (S2E5) Sex with Sue Johanson; Titanic Sex: Jerusha (S2E1), Zachery (S4E16), Nathan S. (S3E13).

This episode was edited and mixed by Dave Quantic, the creator of Fruitbowl.  Ryan Weadon was the music editor.

Fruitbowl is produced independently without corporate media infrastructure or full time staff. Every interview is recorded in-person, on location in each interviewee’s home and production expenses including travel, accommodations, equipment rental are paid for out of pocket by Dave Quantic, FRUITBOWL’s creator. 

The only consistent financial support comes from Fruitbowl’s Patreon community. A minimum $5 monthly donation allows patrons early access to episodes, behind the scenes updates and Salad Tosser tier patrons ($10/mo.) receive access to exclusive video content that is not available to the general public. Learn more about how to become a patron at: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Larger donations and underwriting/sponsorship fees are 100% tax deductible through a partnership with Northwest Film Forum’s fiscal sponsorship program.  FRUITBOWL RECEIVES NO DIRECT FUNDING FROM NWFF, only the use of their non-profit status to receive tax deductible donations. For more information check out: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Tell your friends about Fruitbowl, rate us on your podcast platform or write a review on Apple Podcast. Every little bit helps. And, of course you can also follow us, for now, on Instagram and Tik Tok at fruitbowlpodcast.

Fruitbowl’s fruit artwork for Season 5 was created by Nathan Richards of Paperwombat.

Femininity and queerness go hand in hand; that’s the conventional wisdom, anyway. So it follows that our mom’s should be supportive, non-judgmental, embracing of our idiosyncrasies and accepting of children who don’t conform to conventional expectations of gender. But it doesn’t always work out that way. In this episode, Dave introduces a collection of stories about moms who teach us, disappoint us and, occasionally, surprise us.

Here’s a list of contributors for this episode in the order in which they are presented along with links to their full length episodes in the Fruitbowl archive: Jerry (S1E4) “Hairy chest Pilgrim”; Andrew (S4E11) “Do you want to go to the mall?”; Saira (S3E11) “What do you think a blowjob is?”; Karilla (S3E3) “Just read a book or something.”; DeAunte (S3E3) “Shout out to my Aunties.”; Justin (S4E1) “A family of matriarchs.”; Andre (S3E17) “Kid, you’re a pussy.”; Steven (S4E14) “Hippie Mom.”; Ari (S4E3) “Crying in the desert.” ; Paul (S3E5) “Telling mom everything.”; Nathan (S3E4) “Queer Aunt, Uncle & A Cool Mom.”; Jerusha (S2E1) “A Grandmother who fought AIDS.”; Kenny (S4E6) “Kicked out by mom.”; Breona (S4E18) “A sweet and fierce mom.”

This episode was edited by Dave Quantic, the creator of Fruitbowl.  Ryan Weadon was the music editor and final mixer.

Fruitbowl is produced independently without corporate media infrastructure or full time staff. Every interview is recorded in-person, on location in each interviewee’s home and production expenses including travel, accommodations, equipment rental are paid for out of pocket by Dave Quantic, FRUITBOWL’s creator. 

The only consistent financial support comes from Fruitbowl’s Patreon community. A minimum $5 monthly donation allows patrons early access to episodes, behind the scenes updates and Salad Tosser tier patrons ($10/mo.) receive access to exclusive video content that is not available to the general public. Learn more about how to become a patron at: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Larger donations and underwriting/sponsorship fees are 100% tax deductible through a partnership with Northwest Film Forum’s fiscal sponsorship program.  FRUITBOWL RECEIVES NO DIRECT FUNDING FROM NWFF, only the use of their non-profit status to receive tax deductible donations. For more information check out: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate

Tell your friends about Fruitbowl, rate us on your podcast platform or write a review on Apple Podcast. Every little bit helps. And, of course you can also follow us, for now, on Instagram and Tik Tok at fruitbowlpodcast.

Fruitbowl’s fruit artwork for Season 5 was created by Nathan Richards of Paperwombat.

There are as many cliches about fatherhood as there are about queer people. Dads are little league coaches, the leaders of prayers, the final word in family debates, trusted voices of wisdom who guide their children through adolescence and prepare them for adulthood. Join Dave as he introduces a chorus of queers who describe their complex relationships with their fathers and what their patriarchs did (or didn’t do) when they found themselves in charge of kids who drew outside the lines of the typical heteronormative behavior.
Here’s a list of contributors for this episode in the order in which they are presented along with links to their full length episodes in the Fruitbowl archive: Tyler - S1E6; Deaunte - S3E3; Shavit - S3E8; Tai - S3E7; Jason - S1E1; Adam T. - S3E20; Paul - S3E5; Adé - S2E11; Carlos - S1E2; Stephen - S2E10; Alan - S3E2; Nathan S. - S3E13; Zachery - S4E16.
This episode was edited and mixed by Dave Quantic, the creator of Fruitbowl.
Fruitbowl is produced independently without corporate media infrastructure or full time staff. Every interview is recorded in-person, on location in each interviewee’s home and production expenses including travel, accommodations, equipment rental are paid for out of pocket by Dave Quantic, FRUITBOWL’s creator.
The only consistent financial support comes from Fruitbowl’s Patreon community. A minimum $5 monthly donation allows patrons early access to episodes, behind the scenes updates and Salad Tosser tier patrons ($10/mo.) receive access to exclusive video content that is not available to the general public. Learn more about how to become a patron at: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate
Larger donations and underwriting/sponsorship fees are 100% tax deductible through a partnership with Northwest Film Forum’s fiscal sponsorship program. FRUITBOWL RECEIVES NO DIRECT FUNDING FROM NWFF, only the use of their non-profit status to receive tax deductible donations. For more information check out: https://www.fruitbowlpodcast.com/donate
Tell your friends about Fruitbowl, rate us on your podcast platform or write a review on Apple Podcast. Every little bit helps. And, of course you can also follow us, for now, on Instagram and Tik Tok at fruitbowlpodcast.
Fruitbowl’s fruit artwork for Season 5 was created by Nathan Richards of Paperwombat.