I'm Eric Marcus, and this is a special bonus episode of Making Gay History.

Back in the late 1980s, over the two years that I interviewed people for my book,

I found there were two emotions driving people to do what they did

in the fight for equal rights.

One was anger over discrimination and disrespect.

And the other was love.

The right to love and be loved for who we are.

We're releasing this on Valentine's Day,

but whenever you hear it, think of this as a love letter.

We've reached back into my stack of audio cassettes to bring you some moments from a few very special love stories, about cautious love, the loss of a love, love's sickness, and first love.

Nancy Walker had been burned before.

She'd fallen head over heels for a woman who couldn't love her back.

But then she met someone who melted her heart, and she couldn't quite believe it.

Interview with Nancy Walker Sunday, December 10th, 1989, at the home of Nancy Walker in Jamaica, Plains, Massachusetts.

And then this one.

She was too tall, and she was gawky.

She was still a kid.

She had a dreadful haircut, and all her clothes were wrong.

I was sure she had this man who was interested in her

and she used to write him these long letters by hand on yellow lined paper. I remember looking at

those and thinking, oh my God, she's going to get involved with him. And I better prepare myself

because this is not going to work. But it did.

...