From Boy Culture:
Without digital wizardry, it is amazing what Bidgood was able to accomplish with his photography.
The peak of his work at that time was the underground arthouse film Pink Narcissus, which featured amateur performances by models Bobby Kendall and Don Brooks, as well as stage actor and fellow visionary Charles Ludlam (1943-1987).
The film is about a hustler (Kendall) fantasizing himself into various louche scenes from history. Released in 1971, it was painstakingly filmed on 8 mm from 1963-1970. It was released initially without Bidgood’s consent, so he withheld his credit — robbing him of what would have been considerably more attention.
In fact, he wasn’t confirmed as the auteur for over 20 years, by which time his distinctive work had been consumed and reimagined by a new generation of queer creatives, Pierre et Gilles among them.