Lester Kinsolving

Charles Lester Kinsolving, known as Les Kinsolving (December 18, 1927 – December 4, 2018), was an American political talk radio host, previously heard on WCBM in Baltimore, Maryland. He is known for being the first White House correspondent to ask questions about the HIV/AIDS epidemic during the Reagan administration; he continued to ask questions about the disease even though press secretary Larry Speakes and some other correspondents made light of it; Speakes joked that Kinsolving had an "abiding interest in the disease" because he was "a fairy".[1][2][3][4] Kinsolving first asked questions about AIDS in 1982; President Reagan would not acknowledge the epidemic until 1985, by which time more than five thousand people had died from the disease.[5]

Lester Kinsolving
Born(1927-12-18)December 18, 1927
DiedDecember 4, 2018(2018-12-04) (aged 90)

Kinsolving was an outspoken opponent of gay rights organizations – "the sodomy lobby," as he referred to them – mainly because of his religious beliefs.[6]

Kinsolving was also an actor, playing the same role in two films: Gettysburg and Gods and Generals. In those films, he portrayed Confederate General William Barksdale. A biography of Kinsolving, Gadfly, The Life and Times of Les Kinsolving – White House Watchdog, ISBN 978-1935071808, was written by his youngest daughter, Kathleen, and was released in 2010. Kinsolving died on December 4, 2018.[7]

Filmography
YearTitleRoleNotes
1993GettysburgBrig. Gen. William Barksdale
2003Gods and Generals(final film role)

References
  1. Amira, Dan. "AIDS Was Hilarious to the Reagan White House, Press Corps". New York Magazine. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
  2. Amira, Dan (2 December 2013). "AIDS Was Hilarious to the Reagan White House, Press Corps". Intelligencer. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
  3. Leon, Harmon. "Listen to the Reagan Administration Laughing at the AIDS Epidemic". Vice. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
  4. Geidner, Chris. "13 Times The Reagan White House Press Briefing Erupted With Laughter Over AIDS". BuzzFeed. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
  5. Lawson, Richard. "The Reagan Administration's Unearthed Response to the AIDS Crisis Is Chilling". Vanity Fair. Retrieved March 7, 2016.
  6. Dechter, Gadi (2009-01-19). "Les Is More". Baltimore City Paper. Archived from the original on 19 January 2009. Retrieved 2019-11-11.
  7. Schudel, Matt (10 December 2018). "Lester Kinsolving, pesky White House questioner, dies at 90". Boston Globe. Retrieved 2019-11-11.


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