Author Vito Russo published the first edition of The Celluloid Closet in 1981. It is still a very informative and provocative book written about gay people and popular culture. Vito Russo was able to show us through history not only how gay men and lesbians had been erased or demonized in movies but in all of American culture as well. The movie The Celluloid Closet was made into a documentary that shows us the way movies have portrayed homosexuals since the beginning of film. Whether these images are negative or positive, they have helped shape America's attitude towards gays.