# Has Any Famous Person Who "Came Out" Ever Truly Surprised You? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 21, 2010, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867 "2010-02-21T13:52:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/261 "2010-06-11T05:00:52Z")
> [@astro](#): > > [Edgar J Hoover](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._Edgar_Hoover)being maybe-sorta-kinda gay was kind of a surprise. > > That “wide stance” [Senator Larry Craig](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Larry_Craig) didn’t ping the gaydar in interviews he held. I’m not sure either of those actually meet the OP specs; they never really “came out”, they were outed by evidence. And I have a friend (an elected official (Democratic)) who was in Larry Craig’s fraternity at the University of Idaho. He said there were rumors about him even then (though way back then, many of the students from rural Idaho didn’t even understand what the rumors were about.) ---
**Author:** ![levdrakon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@levdrakon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/levdrakon)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 5:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/262 "2010-06-11T05:02:50Z")
> [@Illuminatiprimus](#): > > Gareth Thomas - a gay rugby player in the UK. It’s not actually him per se that I found surprising, it’s that anyone in the world of professional sport would ever actually come out whilst they’re still playing. Awesome. I’m in love. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/263 "2010-06-11T06:03:13Z")
I’ve been surprised by pretty much every person I have recognized that was listed in this thread except George Michael. The few that I knew about already (Jim Nabors, Rock Hudson), I was surprised when I found out about them as well. To find that Raymond Burr was gay is a big surprise, but the biggest surprise was to find (in this thread) that Tony Randall wasn’t. I’m generally pretty oblivious. But in this particular arena, it seems I am even worse. At this point, I’m thinking that \*I \*might be completely homosexual and not even know it. ---
**Author:** ![Illuminatiprimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/illuminatiprimus/32/11520_2.png) [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/264 "2010-06-11T15:22:28Z")
By the time Michael came out I don’t think it was much of a secret, it just wasn’t official. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/265 "2010-06-11T15:38:14Z")
> [@Illuminatiprimus](#): > > By the time Michael came out I don’t think it was much of a secret, it just wasn’t official. Could you actually watch the music video of _[Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIgZ7gMze7A)_ and honestly think George Michael was straight? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Illuminatiprimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/illuminatiprimus/32/11520_2.png) [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/266 "2010-06-11T15:44:24Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > Could you actually watch the music video of _[Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIgZ7gMze7A)_ and honestly think George Michael was straight? 😃 Not to mention hotel tropicana. Yeeeeeesh… ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/267 "2010-06-11T15:48:33Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > Could you actually watch the music video of _[Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIgZ7gMze7A)_ and honestly think George Michael was straight? 😃 No. Not at all. But if I had to guess which Wham! member was gay, I’d have said Andrew Ridgely–who is ostensibly het. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. ---
**Author:** ![a35362](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@a35362](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a35362)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/268 "2010-06-11T16:44:30Z")
Okay, well, then I’m a complete idiot, because I NEVER suspected that George Michael was gay. “It’s cold out there, but it’s warm in bed,” “I want your sex,” – THAT guy?? Constantly surrounded by pretty girls, one of the big sex symbols of the '80s? THAT guy? Nuh-uh, never saw it. In his Wham! days, he was pretty and had fluffy hair and very white teeth… but it was the '80s! Lots of young guys were “pretty” that way! Really! Johnny Depp, Patrick Swayze, lots of musicians… After he came out, I do remember wondering why you never heard about his latest girlfriend, his latest conquest… but a lot of celebrities try to keep their private lives private, if only so that their fans can continue to happily fantasize about them (as I think somebody here already pointed out). I think when I was younger, I was more surprised by this stuff, just because I didn’t think about it. Nowadays I don’t care so much, although I am pleasantly surprised that more people seem to feel safer about coming out. ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/269 "2010-06-11T17:28:11Z")
I am not sure if I am being wooshed or not, but are some of you seriously contending that Jim (Gomer Pyle) Nabors is gay? ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2010, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/270 "2010-06-11T21:02:45Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Rock Hudson and Jim Nabors- per Nabors anyway- didn’t know each other socially. The whole rumor about their relationship started as a _Laugh In_ joke- “If Rock Hudson married Gomer Pyle he’d be Rock Pyle”- and from there, since Hudson’s homosexuality was an open secret and Nabors if he isn’t gay missed a really good chance it morphed into an urban legend that the two men were involved. (Rock preferred 20-something hunks; no idea what Nabors taste lends itself to- wouldn’t be surprised to learn he’s celibate.) The joke around here is “What do the state of NC and Jim Nabors have in common? Blowing Rock” ---
**Author:** ![crypto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b3f665/32.png) [@crypto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crypto)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/271 "2010-06-12T05:08:49Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > Rock Hudson was a big surprise. To think that he would be doing a movie with Ann Margret and only be thinking of going home to blow Gomer Pyle , left me amazed. I read something about Hudson that was pretty interesting. I don’t even know if this is possible, but very early in his career, he had a higher-pitched voice. Supposedly he went to the mountains (Aspen, maybe?) and screamed at the top of his lungs until he damaged or “broke” his vocal chords. Supposedly, this made his voice deeper and hid his sexuality from the masses. I’ll see if I can find my cite for that. I remember reading it and wondering if it was even possible to do. I remember the Jim Nabors rumors and jokes with Hudson. One with Hudson in the shower, bending over for the soap, Nabors nails him from behind and says in his Gomer Pyle voice - “SURPRISE, SURPRISE, SURPRISE!” ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 5:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/272 "2010-06-12T05:47:37Z")
> [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](#): > > I am not sure if I am being wooshed or not, but are some of you seriously contending that Jim (Gomer Pyle) Nabors is gay? He’s never come out or been outed or, to my knowledge, spoken to the issue, but there were rumors about him and Hudson (completely unfounded rumors as I mentioned, they in fact didn’t know each other beyond meeting at a Hollywood event or two). However, the fact he’s a bit “sissy” and has never married and collects antiques and the like all lead to speculation he’s gay. He’s also extremely religious so he may be in the NGBVJ (Not Gay by Virtue of Jesus) camp, and is or isn’t I’d be absolutely astonished if he ever came out. And certainly he had at least one hetero encounter, or else the world wouldn’t have Clay Aiken. ---
**Author:** ![MMcgrath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e56c9b/32.png) [@MMcgrath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MMcgrath)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2010, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/273 "2010-06-12T09:02:20Z")
> [@Lamia](#): > > I don’t think Townshend was ever really confused, but he made statements that were confusing to others. His infamous “I know what it feels like to be a woman” remark was in reference to a song he’d written from a woman’s perspective. He has been pretty open about the fact that in Swinging London he, like many others, did all kinds of experimenting. For many years Townshend would, if asked, say that he wasn’t going to deny being bisexual because he had a lot of gay/bi friends and fans and wasn’t going to treat the question like it was something shocking that had to be denied. He also seemed to find it rather amusing that people were so curious about the subject. In a [2002 _Rolling Stone_ interview](http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/petetownshend/articles/story/5939827/pete_townshend_the_rs_interview) he did, when pressed by the interviewer, say that he had a couple of physical encounters with other men when he was young but that he’s never considered himself to be bisexual. Lots of rockers experimented. What about David Bowie? Maybe he tried to be gay but couldn’t stick with it. I think he just wanted people to wonder if he was gay and he was involved with the Velvet Underground. So, I think he took a walk on the wild side. I saw him do an imitation of Marlene Dietrich. WOW! ---
**Author:** ![EVERYNAMEISTAKEN](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ac8455/32.png) [@EVERYNAMEISTAKEN](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EVERYNAMEISTAKEN)\ **Post date:** [September 15, 2010, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/274 "2010-09-15T04:53:41Z")
Niel Patrick Harris, Clay Aiken, and Ricky Martin all surprised me. Guess my gaydar isn’t so great, lol, even though I myself am attracted to guys. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2010, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/275 "2010-09-16T07:28:52Z")
> [@Crawlspace](#): > > I was surprised to learn that Stephen Fry is gay. I don’t make a point of finding his work, but I have seen him in a few things and he struck me as someone just old enough to have the odd upper crust English mannerisms that spawned the phrase, “Is he gay or is he British?” Um, seriously? I don’t think there could be any contemporary literary or theatrical figure further out of the closet than he. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2010, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/276 "2010-09-16T08:08:09Z")
> [@KarlGrenze](#): > > > [@Nava](#): > > > > There’s a Spanish actor/singer/showman who completely refuses to talk about his private life. Once we were talking about whether he was or wasn’t gay and I said: “Well, I don’t see that it matters, really, since it’s not like any of us is going to date him or whatever, but he is for sure. I mean, Bea was crazy about him when we were 15.” > > “So?” > > “So, the other two guys she was nuts for at the time were George Michael and Boy George.” > > “Oh! I see. He totally is, then!” > > I was going to ask you if you were referring to Miguel Bosé, but alas, he is Panamanian… anyways, is he or isn’t he? Sorry, just saw this. Born in Panama City, but AFAIK not Panamanian (or if he is, he has triple nationality; I do understand he does or did have double from his parents, but back then I think you had to choose at 18). And, well, he’s not saying and I doubt he’ll ever say short of deciding to get married… but, you know what? Bea was totally crazy about him! (She hit the home run by adding Chamberlain, who is one of the very few people who’ve pinged my gaydar on first sight). ---
**Author:** ![Illuminatiprimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/illuminatiprimus/32/11520_2.png) [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2010, 9:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/277 "2010-09-16T09:10:18Z")
> [@Askance](#): > > > [@Crawlspace](#): > > > > I was surprised to learn that Stephen Fry is gay. I don’t make a point of finding his work, but I have seen him in a few things and he struck me as someone just old enough to have the odd upper crust English mannerisms that spawned the phrase, “Is he gay or is he British?” > > Um, seriously? I don’t think there could be any contemporary literary or theatrical figure further out of the closet than he. He was, for an extremely long time, someone who “didn’t talk about his private life”, if you know what I mean. ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2010, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/278 "2010-09-16T10:38:06Z")
> [@Illuminatiprimus](#): > > > [@Askance](#): > > > > Um, seriously? I don’t think there could be any contemporary literary or theatrical figure further out of the closet than he. > > He was, for an extremely long time, someone who “didn’t talk about his private life”, if you know what I mean. He’s been out since at least the early '90s AFAIK (to quote his character from Peter’s Friends, “Oh, how can I put this delicately? It’s just that I’m not really in the vagina business.”). Obviously I don’t know the man but I thought much of his privacy issues derived from his manic-depression, not his homosexuality. ---
**Author:** ![Illuminatiprimus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/illuminatiprimus/32/11520_2.png) [@Illuminatiprimus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Illuminatiprimus)\ **Post date:** [September 16, 2010, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/279 "2010-09-16T11:58:37Z")
You’re right that he’s been out since the 90s, I think it was around 95 he came out, but before that there was always speculation and he was always “private” when asked. He’s not particularly private now, in fact when it comes to talking about his mental health I’d go as far to say he’s bordering on poster child. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [September 18, 2010, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867/280 "2010-09-18T00:17:08Z")
Richard Chamberlain has been mentioned? I just read his autobiography, which was sketchy. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/has-any-famous-person-who-came-out-ever-truly-surprised-you/529867.md?page=15)