Jump to content

Closeted (gay) actors formerly on the soaps


DNBursky

Recommended Posts

  • Members

Anyone who doesn't understand that Susan Flannery intentionally remained closeted should read what Rita Mae Brown said when she outed her in her memoir, RITA WILL. And, I'm sorry if some people have a problem with the word "closet" in this context. I do not. Although I am open to new terminology. And, if anyone here in this thread is interested in datalounge type gossip, then, I'm sure they can find their way there. As far as I am aware, most gay soap actors remained closeted as far as fans were concerned possibly because they feared losing their jobs, possibly because they feared losing their fanbases, or for whatever reason, which is their own to know & none of our concern. Meanwhile, many fans knew & everyone at their shows knew & they lived comfortably open in their own communities. This is not rocket science. It's just the way things were done. I am in no way critical of them for that. If someone else is, they'll have to support that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 509
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Top Posters In This Topic

  • Members

This is so out of the closet though Contessa. 

Most of the people we are talking about, did theater too. Everyone in the theater community knew and over there they had to deal with a different, sometimes more mature and sophisticated audience. Soap press was something completely different. 

Heck, even Billy Haines was not in the closet back in the day. He was comfortable living his life around friends and co-workers almost 100 ago. 

So this thread is more or less about gay and lesbian people on soaps.  And I should stop talking talking before this thread is closed down.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

Few roles, not few actors

Please register in order to view this content

  To be more specific I should've written, 'one of the few roles for older gay actors on soaps...'

Also, while I don't want to engage in who was f%*$ing whom, I still think there is an interesting discussion to be had about what percent of closeting was the actor's choice, versus the production's choice, versus the soap press's choice.  Because I don't believe that they were equally complicit.  Furthermore, I think each case was very different.

Edited by j swift
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I read the last few pages...

I don't want to argue or go into an argument. From what I understood here in the topic, I agree mostly with what @Sapounopera said in all their posts. That's how I feel about the situation, but I can understand other POVs too.

I, myself, as a gay man coming from a terribly homophobic home country and raised in a terribly homophobic household... consider myself completely out of the closet, but I haven't screamed it out of the windows. And to this day I have gay friends who tell me... Are you ashamed if you don't want to go to this and that... pride event... Which I'm always shocked to hear. And my answer is always this - I've been in the organization of a huge pride event and just because I was not front and center, that doesn't mean I was not part of it. A very crucial part of it.

So yes, only the people that know me, KNOW. I am married to a man, but even if I was married to a woman, I would not be shoving my private life into people's faces. My partner had a stalker that stole all his pictures and was making fake profiles with them... and I have learned from him that private info is private info. So yeah, we keep the lovey-dovey facebook pics at a minimum... I have met people who's first question to me was Are you gay... Well, no need to say that we didn't become friends.  

I also understand that famous people coming out and saying they are gay has benefited the community and has bring so much freedom and joy to so much people, just by their courage and example. And I applaud them for it. But not everyone needs and can do it. And yes, that doesn't in my book, mean they are in the closet. I have always perceived that... once my mom and dad know... I'm out. But again... this is different to different people and different society situations. 

 

 

 

Edited by Maxim
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Members

I don't think LGBTQ+ actors were relegated to just one type or stereotype. 

Okay, where are these twisted villains being a barrier to young love?

GL, William Roerick, Henry Chamberlain

GL, Chris Bernau, Alan Spaulding

AMC, GL, Matt Bomer, Ian, Ben Reade

GH & other, Ian Buchanan, Duke Lavery

various, Joel Crothers

Y&R, AW, William Grey Espy, Snapper, Mitch

DAYS, B&B, Susan Flannery, Laura, Stephanie

AMC, Amanda Bearse

AW, Dack Rambo, Grant Harrison

AW, Connie Ford, Ada

EON, Dennis Parker

Y&R, DAYS, Greg Rikaart ... okay, maybe Leo

ATWT, Y&R Christian LeBlanc

AMC, Jonathan Bennett

plenty more 

Edited by Contessa Donatella
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.



  • Recent Posts

    • Please register in order to view this content

    • Going by ratings, I'd say 1982. June 8, 1981 to October 5, 1984 Ryan's Hope time slot rival was Y&R. Ryan's Hope was competitive vs. Y&R until June 1982. Remainder of 1982 Ryan's Hope falls and Y&R rebounds from their post-expansion slump. 1983 Y&R blew up and we know the rest.
    • An early TV role for Carolyn Groves, the Victoria recast we deserved.

      Please register in order to view this content

       
    • They are pretty rough in 1981 too, although at least we know the characters.
    • Roger mostly just had a conscience if it affected him, although there were a few bits here and there. Didn't he look out for Tangie out of loyalty to her parents?  Even at the time I don't know if I could have argued that Roger had been ruined, given that he had raped two women, but there was a complexity in the writing for Roger for most of his return until Laibson/McTavish. He just became a one-note heel. Even worse, I just found Dinah completely unwatchable as Wendy Moniz was incapable of playing a heroine (I know even the best could not have made that material work).
    • Am I the only one who hates how this show treats Claire? She's a glorified extra This girl comes from stock the granddaughter of the shows 2 biggest supercouples and they treat her like she's a throw away. Her pop pop is dying/dead and her other grandpa is saved awoken from his coma, alive because of the selfless heroic actions of her maternal grandpa

      Please register in order to view this content

      There is no reason why she wouldn't be here to say goodbye. Olivia Rose isn't doing anything I bet she love to come back and say goodbye. I just don't understand the motivation & thought process when it comes to some decisions. This show is probably still salty about how they didn't succeed in trying to assassinate Claire, on the alter of her dicktimized bird brained aunt & her serial killer boyfriend/husband with the audience.  Also unless they're keeping it under wraps Sami not being back in time to say goodbye to John is a huge fumble. If it had to do with Ali availability then they should've pushed back the fallout of Johnny learning about his sperm donor raping his mother and the subsequent confrontation with Elvis & Sami to conceded with John's coma & death so Sami/Ali were here for it. It's just a huge piece missing from this. As much I hated Sami's overdramatic looney tunes treatment of John long after she was in her 30s, became a grandma, her & John had one of the best dynamic complex heartbreaking father/daughter relationship's on both daytime and the show. It would be full circle as John's end of watch nears, that Sami apologizes for her treatment of him & admits she does love him. He was just as much as a father to her as "Roman", in a impossible situation that turned everyone lives upside down(The 2 Romans, Roman Intitial Death, The Affair)through no fault of his own. How fitting if she called him dad one last time & how thankful she is for his unconditional support and love. He squeezes her hand one last time, calls her Samantha and finally let's go after hearing the words he spent decades longing for in my eyes
    • So around '84 is when things get bad?
    • There are details through the thread, but yes, as mentioned, she hated Ellen Wheeler, and lambasted her for crying a lot, for her decisions with firing and Peapack, etc. Back in the day she also hated Pam Long, who created Reva and gave Reva all of her best material. The producers or writers she liked most seemed to be those who saw Reva in the most generic of molds, although she likely doesn't see it that way. She was OK on OLTL; I think @Vee could probably give a better summary. She was earthy and added her usual hard work to some trash material. There was nothing special going on, as yet again with patron saint Carlivati it was all plot, no character, and he cared more about writing for a cutesy child character.  You're right about what they could have done with Reva. Reva, Erica, and any women who are in story long enough face this problem. The biggest difference is Reva was allowed to age (even with the post-menopausal baby), which Erica was not.
    • Cali was the only Paulina for me on AW.  Was Judi Evans such a “name” that Cali was fired for her?  Judi basically played an entirely different character.  She could’ve been Nancy!
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy