"Lois, for the love of God! What is that thing hanging down there between Jolene's legs. It's like a man's...oh my GOD!"
Thus begins the remarkable Morfie, a 1967 look at the plight of a hermaphrodite,
written by the prolific female author Linda DuBreuil, who it is claimed wrote
over 300 books, mostly of a pornographic nature, before her death in 1980.
DuBreuil's protagonist Jolene Anderson is born with both male and female sex
organs. Her wealthy mother, Lois, adores all things feminine, therefore it
comes as no surprise that she chooses to raise her child as female. Jolene
however is of the belief that she is male and begins to act accordingly. A
visit to a carny, where a hermaphrodite (or morphedite to give the book's preferred
term) is humiliatingly paraded about for leering straights, leads Jolene to the
realization that she too is a Morfie. Jolene's path to maleness is unsurprisingly
a difficult one. The neurotic, domineering Lois threatens to take her own life,
by putting her head in the oven, every time Jolene won't shave her legs. Jolene
skips her prom, instead choosing to party at a mixed race club, where she hangs
out with pimps, hookers, alcoholics and junkies... beginning a pattern of
Jolene identifying with outsiders. In the book's second act, Jolene who has now
adopted a male appearance and the name Joe, travels across America. The pot of
gold at the end of Joe's rainbow being an operation that will rid Joe of his
female sex and allow him to live life as a heterosexual male.
DuBreuil certainly doesn't take the easy route of portraying Jolene/Joe as a
victim or a character who actively seeks out our sympathy. On the contrary, Joe
was Jolene is truly a ghastly excuse for a human being at times. As Jolene she
cons a mentally troubled man into marriage, springing the surprise of a hidden
cock on the mortified man and then raping him with it too. As Joe, he betrays
his driving belief that he is a straight male, when he finds himself sexually
attracted to a blind black man, dishonesty portraying himself as a straight
woman who is looking for anonymous sex. Only for the blind black man to turn
out to be more perceptive than Joe had reckoned on. During foreplay the man
calls out Joe as a male homosexual, with it has to be said an unexpected degree
of compassion and understanding "Don't bear a man who wants it that way
with any malice. It just ain't my way, that's all". A display of kindness
that Joe responds to by repeatedly kicking the blind man in the crotch and
unleashing a slew of racial insults.
It is a big ask of an audience to forgive such abhorrent behavior. DuBreuil
though certainly does leave you with conflicting emotions when it comes to her
main character. There are moments when you hope Joe will find peace of mind,
only to take it all back, and chastise yourself for ever giving a damn about
such an out and out sociopath. Joe's folly being that in order to reinvent
himself as the perfect heterosexual he ends up destroying the people- namely
wives and an adopted son- who help built his image as this straight allow,
pillar of the community.
The only other DuBreuil books I've read, 1970's 'Nightmare Baby' and 1979's Manson-esque
'Follow the Leader' were both underwhelming experiences. I'm happy to report
then that DuBreuil has redeemed herself in my eyes with this earlier effort.
Morfie must have packed quite the punch in 1967, many of the sleaze paperbacks
from that period are a case of all sizzle and no steak, but Morfie is a mouth
watering piece of meat. DuBreuil might forgo the opportunity for a positive
portrayal of a sexual minority, but she does trample on taboos here like a
rampaging elephant. Morfie's cavalcade of kinks including bondage,
transvestism, lesbianism, nymphomania, with even a couple of flirtations with
blasphemy when Joe begins to have visions of a black Jesus.
Just as its main character changes genders, the book itself switches genres
several times over. Morphing from a sex change operation expose, to a road trip
novel and then a courtroom drama. As well as taking on the appearance of a
Tales from the Crypt story when Joe attempts to get away with murder by cooking
a woman's flesh and grinding down her bones.
Morfie is a mind boggling, trash classic currently forgotten by the world,
which would probably be given hell if it were to be rediscovered. I think
though that you eventually reach the stage when you realize that life is too
short to waste it reading non-offensive books. The book's cover by renowned
sleaze paperback illustrator Robert Bonfils is quite simply a work of sordid
art, that could easily be mistaken for a 1960s Italian horror movie poster.
Wicked as it, I also couldn't help laugh out loud at Jolene's nonplussed
reaction to discovering a male lover has killed himself, deciding to leave the
unfortunate fellow hanging from a rope in favour of making coffee instead
"looks like he kicked a little. He'd have a fit if he saw those scuff marks.
I fill up the coffee pot with water and measure the coffee into the top. I
never did care for the way he made coffee anyway. Too weak".
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