http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a4_208.html
While he may not have lost it to a woman, the question still remains open as to whether he might have lost it to a man…
http://www.britannica.com/bcom/eb/article/7/0,5716,115657+2+108764,00.html (scan down to “International Prominence”)
Read between the lines the account of his friendship with a certain “Fatio”.
None of this is conclusive, but we must ask after all this time what does it mean when a reasonably good looking, well appointed genius eschews offers of romance from the beauties of his day and suffers an emotional breakdown over the separation of a male friend? Couple that with the fact that if he was (sshhhhh) g-a-y, it certainly wouldn’t be spelled out in bold letters for us today.
While I’m not a radical fearie proponent that all geniuses were actually gay (in fact an anachonistic designation), and also recognize that in a less homophobic (if only by virtue of a mind set that pretended it didn’t exist) time, not all intense male-male friendships were erotic, nonetheless, sometimes what it looks like is just what it is…