When Hollywood Studs Married Off Gay Stars to Keep Their Sexualy a Secret | HISTORY

Contents:

• DYNAMIC DUO: 20 QUTNS WH THE GAY BEARDS
• WHICH GAY ACTOR IS USG A BISEXUAL ACTRS AS HIS BEARD?
• WHEN HOLLYWOOD STUDS MARRIED OFF GAY STARS TO KEEP THEIR SEXUALY A SECRET

DYNAMIC DUO: 20 QUTNS WH THE GAY BEARDS

Brian Delrenti and Johnathan Dahl, llectively known as The Gay Beards, are more than jt two attractive bt iends wh imprsive facial hair. Pret-a-Reporter ught up wh The Gay Beards for a quick game of 20 qutns, where Delrenti and Dahl dish on everythg om bt groomg practic to the one thg they’d never attempt to put their beards. The Gay Beards: The year was 1998 and we met through a mutual iend one eveng after school.

Why “The Gay Beards” for your name?

WHICH GAY ACTOR IS USG A BISEXUAL ACTRS AS HIS BEARD?

B: Our aim was not to promote the fact that we are gay, bee all realy, that do not fe by any means.

“Beardg” is a slang term scribg a nsc attempt by a lbian or gay man to hi her or his homosexualy om others by appearg to date or marry someone of the oppose sex. Some gay actors and actrs rpond by eher self-iatg a beardg relatnship or havg one arranged for them by the stud to which they were ntracted.

For example, then-Hollywood heartthrob Rock Hudson, hearg that Confintial magaze was planng to expose his homosexualy, married his agent’s secretary as a ver 1955 (she herself is mored to have been a lbian).

WHEN HOLLYWOOD STUDS MARRIED OFF GAY STARS TO KEEP THEIR SEXUALY A SECRET

In a 2011 terview wh Joy Behar, Betty Whe implied she ocsnally beard for the flamboyantly gay Liberace. Liberace, who never publicly admted to beg gay, 1954 announced his engagement to actrs Joanne R, but they never end up marryg.

While most people are aware of at least some Hollywood beardg efforts, the public is probably ls aware of efforts by lbians Hollywood to hi their sexualy than gay men. Although not exactly a “beardg” suatn, Rosie O’Donnell’s self-profsed fatuatn for Tom Cise the mid-90s on “The Rosie O’Donnell Show” helped mask her homosexualy om the stay at home mom crowd that formed the bulk of her viewership. Although the Hays Co was replaced 1968 and gay marriage has been legal sce 2015, the drivers behd an dividual choosg to beard (avoidg public scty that would rult blackballg/loss of e, fear of rejectn by fay and iends, etc.

Although Amerins are more likely to be faiar wh beardg by gay men (skepticism at “Amerin Idol” sger Clay Aiken’s prottatns of heterosexualy greatly exceed crly about them), mors about Oprah beg a secret relatnship wh Gayle Kg and, to a much lser extent, Dolly Parton and Judy Ogle, have shown astonishg riliency over s, suggtg that at least some Amerins unrstand that some celebry lbians (if not actually Oprah and Dolly) still feel a need to rema closeted. For example, the sger Ricky Mart me out 2010 as gay, but do that mean the women he dated the 1990s were beards?