Gay movie stars 1950s
5. Stars from a Bi-Gone Era
Most of the stories that we discussed came from one guy: Scotty Bowers, a Hollywood pimp of the queer silver screen actors of the s and beyond. He was also paired with Alfred Kinsey in his famous study of human sexuality in the s by providing many of the interview subjects.
A former marine, Bowers kept peaceful for many years about these stories, as he did not want to adversely affect the lives of any of the actors who were still around. Many of the stories were actively hushed up using fixers paid by the studios at the time, and several of the actors were in "lavender marriages"marriages arranged by the studio, frequently with another queer player. At the time, studios especially would not have wanted the queer attractions of their headlining actors to be widely famous, as that would have damaged the 'wholesome family image' of many of the films they wanted to market.
After all of the actors died, Bowers finally decided that his experiences and stories couldn't harm their image or beloved statusplus the society was a more open place to queer attracti
Old Hollywood Stars You Didn't Know Were Gay
Let's state the obvious: Being a gay celebrity during the days of Elderly Hollywood was no stride in the park. Behind Tinseltown's glitzy facade loomed the specter of Hollywood's "sexual gestapo," a designation coined by Matt Tyrnauer, director of the documentary Scotty and the Confidential History of Hollywood (via NPR). "It was very difficult," he said, "for people to include authentic lives." And Tyrnauer should know: His movie profiled L.A. personality Scotty Bowers, who reportedly acted as a "confidante, confidant, and pimp for Hollywood's closeted movie stars."
The threat of exposure was concrete and ever-present for these entertainers. Per Tyrnauer, studio contracts contained so-called "moral clauses" that could instantly vaporize a lucrative career. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Police Department's vice squad were all too willing to bust celebrities, often working in cahoots with the press in their quest to hobble reputations.
Definitively name-checking these stars is impossible, as they were all in the closet through
When Hollywood Studios Married Off Gay Stars to Keep Their Sexuality a Secret
Valentino also married costume designer Natacha Rambova in , at a time when his career was starting to accept off and the roles he played were seen as less typically masculine, such as in the film “Monsieur Beaucaire” in His marriage to Rambova ended in , which left some speculating that the marriages of the “pink powder puff” (a nickname Valentino acquired after playing effeminate roles on screen) were coverups to keep the sex symbol’s reputation intact.
Identifying how many Hollywood couples tied the knot to cloak their sexuality is, of course problematic since it’s primarily based on speculation_._
“I think the hardest thing for a historian is to kind of sift through what the rumor [is] and what is actually factual," says Tropiano.
One commonly cited source for speculation is the memoir of Scotty Bowers, Full Service: My Adventures in Hollywood and the Covert Sex Lives of the Stars. Bowers’ account details sexual encounters, gay and straight, that he claims he both arranged and took pa
Gay Hollywood Actors of Old
There were apparently rags in the s that would out actors if the studios did not cough up enough money for them not to. And, some of the now elderly partners of Hollywood stars have told all. I've been surprised at some of the actors who were gay.
The one that surprised me most was Raymond Burr. Any others that have been surprising?
| by Anonymous | reply | May 1, PM |
I've heard rumors about Liberace.
| by Anonymous | reply 1 | November 9, AM |
Van Johnson, Golden Age Hollywood Queen.
| by Anonymous | reply 2 | November 9, AM |
Billy Haines. Who, when told "play along or don't play", told the studio to shove it and became the most sought after interior decorated in Hollywood/Beverly Hills. He and his partner, Jimmie Shields, were together until Haines death from cancer at Soon afterward Shields committed suicide.
Joan Crawford, a friend, called them "the happiest married couple in Hollywood".
| by Anonymous | reply 3 | November 9, AM |
After telling Hollywood to go pound salt Mr. Haines went on to become one of the mos