Hello!
I’ve been meaning to post this all weekend but time has been snug. New readers may be wondering: Who exactly is this Betty Dodson?
She is something of a patron saint of women, of sex and of Planet Waves. Known most popularly as the author of Sex for One, Betty was the first person to come out with a book affirming masturbation, sexuality and the sexuality of women in particular — all with a focus on self-pleasuring and emotional autonomy. It’s a long story and I will tell it again some time, but there has been an approximately 400 year campaign to malign masturbation, and Betty was the first person to answer the issue with some sanity. Since then she’s done many videos; they’re mostly really sexy and fun, though my favorite (my Aquarius Moon talking, I guess) is a lecture she gave in Seattle a few years ago called Betty Dodson: Her Life of Sex and Art. She is really, really funny — the last time I watched it my friend and I laughed ourselves silly at her understated wit, her friendly sarcasm and her salty approach to sex and communication. This one is a keeper, and it’s suitable for showing to teenage kids.
Betty has been a profound influence on my life, my work and my sexual revolutionary nature. I was well on the way to being who I was when I met her in 1996 (I needed to refer a client to her, so I tracked her down). I’ve written many articles about her. Here is my tribute for her 80th birthday (nudity warning, if you’re at work).
Here is the article I did for her 79th birthday that has a LOT about her astrology. Betty has an amazing chart, particularly the way that the first four asteroids and Chiron are configured. I believe that the charts of people who have made their way in the world, in a totally unique way, tell us more about astrology than astrology tells us about them. In Betty’s case it’s about even: she rates by far the person who has grown into her chart the most elegantly and succinctly of anyone I’ve read.
Here is an article in her own words, Fucking Like a Feminist. I posted this as a three-part series with an essay by our then-editor, from a lesbian viewpoint, and one by me about the spiritual nature of pornography (because I get questions from women about why their partners are into the stuff). Those additional articles are at the bottom of the page.
Enjoy…
The video is a must-see. It only cost $2.99 and the 70 minutes goes by quickly. It’s enough to be impressed by the gift of her talent, and how prolific she has been, but the use to which she applied it is even more WOW. I was also pleasantly surprised at how “real” she is. Virgo, to Virgo, I completely enjoyed her, as well as her Aries 8th house Moon! Thank you for posting this reminder. I so glad I watched it.