In the fall of 1955, a gay sex scandal erupted in the unassuming, wholesome and “vice-less” town of Boise, Idaho, as teenage boys who had prostituted themselves to older men began to disclose their dalliances to authorities.

Overnight, Boise’s homosexual underworld — comprised mostly of married family men — was splashed onto headlines and thrust into the spotlight.

Reputations were shattered and lives ruined as the rumors and accusations flew.

What followed was a classic witch-hunt, marked by intense homophobic hysteria, in which the whole town became embroiled.