Back 1977, actor and edian Billy Crystal stunned dienc when he portrayed the first openly ga ma character a TV seri, "Soap." and opened the way for gay ins like Ellen DeGener
Contents:
- 10 GAY, BISEXUAL & QUEER SOAP OPERA STARS WHO ARE OUT — & OUTSTANDG
- BILLY CRYSTAL PORTRAYED FIRST OPENLY GAY MA CHARACTER ON TV — SI THE 'SOAP' STORY
10 GAY, BISEXUAL & QUEER SOAP OPERA STARS WHO ARE OUT — & OUTSTANDG
10 Gay, Bisexual & Queer Soap Opera Stars * gay soap opera characters *
Dpe the shows dippg their to the water wh queer characters and storyl the 1990s — like Ryan Phillippe as groundbreakg gay teen Billy Douglas on “One Life to Live” om 1992 to 1993 — the show shied away om romance for s queer characters until the 21st century. As the dghter of Eri Kane (San Lucci), was the first time such an important legacy character was wrten to be gay.
Other shows the first of the 21st century troduced gay characters, wh mixed rults.
BILLY CRYSTAL PORTRAYED FIRST OPENLY GAY MA CHARACTER ON TV — SI THE 'SOAP' STORY
Jo Soaps as we pay tribute to the out-and-proud gay primetime TV stars and daytime actors. * gay soap opera characters *
On “General Hospal, ” Lus Jon (then played by Ben Hogtyn), the adopted son of Bobbie Spencer (Jackie Zeman) and Tony Jon (Brad Mle) me out as gay, but he didn’t get much romance before he was wrten off the show 2006; the character returned to the nvas played by Ryan Carn 2013. “As the World Turns” wrote Le Snyr (Van Hansis) as gay. The son of superuple Lily and Holn Snyr (Martha Byrne and Jon Hensley), he got a uple of major romanc, first wh Noah Reid (Jake Silbermann), wh whom he shared daytime’s first gay male kiss, though their romance was portrayed as far more chaste than soap operas ually pict heterosexual love stori.
“Days of Our Liv” vted heavily Will Horton (Chandler Massey), who me out as gay, had many ont-burner storyl, and even had a proment love triangle wh Sonny Kiriakis (Freddie Smh) and Pl Nara (Christopher Sean), both of whom were also legacy characters om important fai on the show. Pl they had the bt sex scene out of any of the gay upl. 10 Gay, Bisexual & Queer Soap Opera Stars Who Are Out — & Outstandg.
Some of the actors and actrs playg the inic rol were straight, some were out and gay at the time, and others me out later on.
* gay soap opera characters *
The first Pri March New York Cy was held on June 28, 1970, one year after the Stonewall Uprisg, to honor the thoands of LGBTQ+ people who took to the streets to monstrate agast the discrimatn they faced hog and employment, the anti-homosexual laws agast gatherg bars or dance clubs, to even be out as a homosexual. The ncept behd the ial march me om members of the Eastern Regnal Conference of Homophile Organizatns who had been anizg an annual July 4th monstratn known as the Remr Day Pickets, at Inpennce Hall Philalphia, between 1965 and 1969. In 2011, Freddie Smh ma his Days of Our Liv but as Jt and Adrienne Kiriakis’ son Sonny, who returned to Salem an out and a proud gay man.
When Thom Bierdz returned to Young & Rtls as Phillip Chancellor III 2009, not only did he e back om the ad, but he announced to his fay that he was gay. In 1988, As the World Turns‘ Hank Ellt (Brian Starcher) beme the first male daytime character to e out as gay when he revealed that his partner was dyg of AIDS. Nearly a later, the show troduced soaps’ first gay superuple when sparks flew between Noah Mayer (Jake Silbermann) and Le Snyr (Van Hansis).
Over the brief year he was on, the character’s stggle wh his sexual orientatn clud alg wh his homophobic parents and a tmped-up sndal volvg Reverend Andrew Carpenter. In 2001, Days of Our Liv troduced Harold Wentworth (Ryan Stt), who was the first openly gay character on the soap.