Sean Hay Regrets Not Comg Out as Gay Durg 'Will & Grace' First Run - TheWrap

Contents:

• IS SEAN HAY GAY, WHO IS THE HBAND, HOW MUCH IS HE WORTH?
• SEAN HAY REGRETS NOT COMG OUT AS GAY DURG ‘WILL & GRACE’ FIRST RUN
• “PROBABLY THE HARST THG I’VE DONE”: SEAN HAY ON BRGG OSR LEVANT BACK TO LIFE  GOOD NIGHT, OSRTHE EMMY AWARD–WNG ACTOR SPEAKS WH VANY FAIR ABOUT HIS “EPLY GRATIFYG” TONY NOMATN AFTER WORKG ON THE PROJECT “ON AND OFF FOR OVER 20 YEARS.”BY DONALD LIEBENSONMAY 18, 2023BEN RAPPAPORT, SEAN HAY AND PETER GROSZ GOOD NIGHT, OSR AT THE BELAS THEATER NEW YORK.BY SARA KLWICH/THE NEW YORK TIM/RX. SAVE THIS STORYSAVESAVE THIS STORYSAVEON MAY 2, SEAN HAY EMERGED OM HIS BEDROOM TO THE LIVG ROOM, WHERE HIS HBAND, STT ICENOGLE, WAS WATCHG TELEVISN. ICENOGLE HAD BREAKG NEWS. “YOU’VE BEEN NOMATED,” HE SAID. HAY, STILL WIPG THE SLEEP OM HIS EY, RPOND, “FOR WHAT?”“WHAT” WAS A TONY AWARD—HAY’S SEND NOMATN—FOR HIS VIRTUOSO PERFORMANCE AS OSR LEVANT THE PLAY, GOOD NIGHT, OSR, WHICH DRAMATIZ A LONG NIGHT’S JOURNEY TO THE PSYCHE-SRRED SOUL OF LEVANT, NOW OBSCURE BUT ONCE A STAR OF THE SCREEN (AN AMERIN PARIS), THE NCERT STAGE (THE CLASSILLY TRAED PIANIST WAS REVERED AS THE PREMIER TERPRETER OF HIS IEND, GEE GERSHW), AND THE TALK/GAME SHOW CIRCU, WHERE HIS LACERATG QUIPS (MANY SELF-PRETG AND AIMED AT HIS OWN MENTAL ILLNS) WERE THE 1950S EQUIVALENT OF OMG (“I KNEW DORIS DAY BEFORE SHE WAS A VIRG,” IS ONE OF THIS MOST QUOTED).GOOD NIGHT, OSR, WRTEN BY PULZER PRIZE WNER DOUG WRIGHT AND DIRECTED BY LISA PETERSON, REENACTS A 1958 SWEEPS WEEK APPEARANCE ON THE TONIGHT SHOW, THEN HOSTED BY JACK PAAR (BEN RAPPAPORT), WHO LOOKED AT LEVANT AS RATGS GOLD, AND HE STOKED TENSN OVER WHETHER THIS WOULD BE THE NIGHT LEVANT WOULD GO ONE PILL OVER THE LE. (“TO PUT DLY,” PAAR ONCE TRODUCED HIM, “HE’S AS NERVO AS HE IS CLEVER. FOR EVERY PEARL THAT OUT OF HIS MOUTH, A PILL GO . I ASK YOU TO KEEP THIS MD.”)FOR THIS RISKY LIVE TV APPEARANCE, LEVANT’S LONG-SUFFERG WIFE (EY BERGYL), ARRANG A FOUR-HOUR FURLOUGH OM THE PSYCHIATRIC FACILY TO WHICH SHE HAD HIM MTED. THE CREASGLY PILL-SPERATE LEVANT BOTH FALLS AND RIS TO THE OCSN, AND, THE PLAY’S EMOTNAL CLIMAX, KEEPS HIS MONS AT BAY TO TRIUMPHANTLY PERFORM GERSHW’S “RHAPSODY BLUE.”LEVANT IS FUNNY, Y, (WHEN PAAR ASKS WHAT HE DO FOR EXERCISE, LEVANT RPONDS, “I STUMBLE AND I FALL TO A A”), BUT THE ROLE IS A DRAMATIC PARTURE FOR HAY, WHO IS BT KNOWN FOR HIS INIC EMMY-WNG WILL & GRACE CHARACTER, JACK, A KTEN-WH-A-WHIP NARCISSIST WH A QUIP FOR ALL OCSNS.HIS TRANSFORMATN, PRAISED CHIGO TRIBUNE CRIC CHRIS JON, IS “ONE EP DIVE OF A STAR-TURN, AN ALL-NSUMG (AND NOTABLY ALL-NSUMED) PIECE OF ACTG THAT REVEALS THGS HAY THAT MOST OF HIS WILL & GRACE FANS WILL BE ENTIRELY GOBSMACKED TO DISVER HE HAS HIS ARSENAL.”THIS, HAY TOLD VANY FAIR, WAS THE CHALLENGE THAT DROVE HIM TO SPEND THE LAST TWO S TRYG TO BRG OSR LEVANT BACK TO LIFE.(THIS TERVIEW HAS BEEN EDED FOR CLARY)VANY FAIR: WHAT WAS YOUR REACTN TO THE TONY NOMATN?SEAN HAY: I LLAPSED ON THE UCH. I ULDN’T BELIEVE . IT WAS AN OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCE. IT’S SUCH AN HONOR, AND HOW REWARDG TO JT BE REGNIZED FOR SOMETHG THAT YOU’VE BEEN WORKG ON AND OFF FOR OVER 20 YEARS. IT’S AN CREDIBLE FEELG. FOR TO GO THIS WAY, ’S EPLY GRATIFYG.I RECENTLY HEARD AN TERVIEW WH NATHAN LANE WHICH TALKED ABOUT PURSUG THE TOWERG ROLE OF HICKEY EUGENE O’NEILL’S THE ICEMAN COMETH TO BREAK OUT OF THE MIL-EDY ROL FOR WHICH HE IS MOST ASSOCIATED. WERE YOU LOOKG FOR A SIAR CHALLENGE?ABSOLUTELY. I’D BEEN TOLD SO MANY TIM BY DIFFERENT PEOPLE THE ENTERTAMENT MUNY OVER THE LAST TWO S THAT I SHOULD PLAY OSR LEVANT. WA, WHAT?I DIDN’T KNOW WHO HE WAS. I WENT TO THE LOS ANGEL PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA AND LOOKED AT ARCHIVAL FOOTAGE OF HIM. I THOUGHT HE WAS FASCATG AND SO FUNNY. PEOPLE SAW SOMETHG ELSE ME BEYOND MY CHARACTER OM WILL & GRACE. I BELIEVED , TOO.  I JT NEED THE RIGHT VEHICLE TO BREAK OUT. OTHER JOBS HAPPENED, TIME WENT ON. OTHER PEOPLE, OUT OF NOWHERE WOULD SAY, ‘HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF OSR LEVANT?’ I WAS LIKE, ‘WOW, THIS IS SO BIZARRE.’ I LISTENED TO THE UNIVERSE AND VELOPED [THIS PROJECT]. LONG STORY SHORT—TOO LATE—23 YEARS LATER, HERE WE ARE. MOST POPULARRILEY KEOUGH ON GROWG UP PRLEY, LOSG LISA MARIE, AND INHERG GRACELANDBY BRT HENNEMUTHDONALD TMP’S LAWYER CAN’T STOP GOG ON TV AND MAKG DONALD TMP LOOK RIDICULOLY GUILTY OF THE CRIM HE’S BEEN ACCED OFBY BS LEV“DOPEY AND CONSTUTNALLY DUB”: LEGAL EXPERTS BLAST JUDGE AILEEN CANNON’S LATT PRO-TMP RULGSBY BS LEVWHAT ABOUT LEVANT RONATED WH YOU?I WAS FASCATED BY HIM. PEOPLE WHO KNEW OSR REVERE HIM. I N’T REMEMBER WHO WAS—SOMEBODY FAMO—SAID IF OSR LEVANT DIDN’T EXIST, HE ULD NOT BE IMAGED. FROM AN ACTOR’S STANDPOT, I WAS RPONDG TO THE THGS I ULD TAP TO THAT WE HAVE MON. WE’RE BOTH CLASSILLY TRAED PIANISTS, WE BOTH HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR—I DON’T KNOW IF ME IS ANYWHERE NEAR HIS, THAT’S NOT FOR ME TO JUDGE. AND HE DIRECTLY SUFFERED OM MENTAL ILLNS AND ADDICTN, AND EVER SCE I WAS BORN, I WAS AN OBSERVER OF . EVERYTHG JT SEEMED TO LE UP WH WHAT I WANTED TO DO TO CHALLENGE MYSELF AS AN ACTOR. FOR PEOPLE TO EXPERIENCE HIM NOW AND TO BRG HIM BACK TO LIFE TO THE ZEGEIST OF AMERIN THEATER IS JT A PRIVILEGE.FROM THE PLAY’S PRE-BROADWAY N CHIGO TO THE BELAS THEATRE, HOW HAS YOUR PORTRAYAL OF OSR EVOLVED?I WOULDN’T BORE ANYBODY THIS TERVIEW, BUT YOU DO FD MOMENTS THE PLAY WHERE YOU DISVER TY THGS THAT SOMETIM PAY OFF BIG WAYS AND SOMETIM LTLE WAYS, BUT THEY ARE WS FOR THE ACTOR. BUT I THK WE LUCKED OUT WH DOUG’S WRG, LISA PETERSON AND A PHENOMENAL ST AND PRODUCERS WHO KNOW WHAT THEY’RE DOG. I FEEL LIKE THIS IS LIGHTNG A BOTTLE. IT’S A MOUNTA YOU CLIMB WH EVERY PERFORMANCE. CAN YOU LEAVE OSR BACK AT THE BELAS OR IS HE HARD TO SHAKE?THERE’S ONE THG THAT I N’T STOP DOG, WHICH IS PUTTG MY HAND MY LEFT POCKET, WHICH I’M DOG RIGHT NOW. OSR SO EQUENTLY ON THE JACK PAAR SHOW WOULD HAVE HIS HAND SPECIFILLY HIS LEFT POCKET. I DON’T KNOW WHAT THAT WAS ABOUT, BUT I KEEP MY LEFT HAND MY POCKET AND I’M LIKE, ‘COME ON, GET THAT OUT OF THERE.’IN THE MIL PROMIS, PROMIS, YOU PLAYED A ROLE LIBLY ASSOCIATED WH JACK LEMMON OM THE MOVIE, THE APARTMENT. HERE, YOU’RE PORTRAYG AN ACTUAL PERSON, ALBE ONE WHO TODAY IS NOT GENERALLY WELL-KNOWN. WHICH IS MORE CHALLENGG? OH, GOD, GOOD NIGHT, OSR IS PROBABLY THE HARST THG I’VE DONE; NOT PROBABLY, IS. YOU TRY YOUR HARST TO EMBODY THE PERSON YOU ARE PLAYG. IT’S A WONRFUL THG TO FD SUCH A GREAT GUY AND A GREAT CHARACTER WHO IS SO RICH AND TO BRG EMOTNS GOG ON AT ALL TIM.BEYOND THE PALEY CENTER, WHAT OTHER REARCH DID YOU DO?I READ HIS BOOKS. HE’S AN CREDIBLE WRER, OSR. [PIANIST] MICHAEL FESTE IS AN OSR LEVANT AFICNADO. HE KNOWS EVERYTHG ABOUT OSR. HE SHARED WH ME HIS OSR ARCHIVE, CLUDG THGS THAT AREN’T PUBLIC, RERDGS OF HIM TALKG AT PARTI. MICHAEL HAS BEEN SO KD TO SHARE THEM. SOMETIM, I LISTEN TO SOME OF THE THGS THAT MICHAEL SENT ME, JT TO FD THE VOICE AND THE CHARACTER RIGHT BEFORE I GO ON. BETWEEN OLYMPIAN SIMONE BIL AND TED LASSO, MENTAL HEALTH IS DISCSED MORE OPENLY TODAY THAN WAS WHEN LEVANT JOKED ABOUT HIS PRCRIPTNS ON THE TONIGHT SHOW. DO YOU THK HE WOULD HAVE BEEN HIS ELEMENT TODAY?MOST POPULARRILEY KEOUGH ON GROWG UP PRLEY, LOSG LISA MARIE, AND INHERG GRACELANDBY BRT HENNEMUTHDONALD TMP’S LAWYER CAN’T STOP GOG ON TV AND MAKG DONALD TMP LOOK RIDICULOLY GUILTY OF THE CRIM HE’S BEEN ACCED OFBY BS LEV“DOPEY AND CONSTUTNALLY DUB”: LEGAL EXPERTS BLAST JUDGE AILEEN CANNON’S LATT PRO-TMP RULGSBY BS LEVY. IT BLOWS MY MD WHAT A PNEER HE WAS. HE SPOKE SO OPENLY ABOUT HIS MENTAL HEALTH ISSU ON LIVE TELEVISN THE ‘50S AND ‘60S. CAN YOU IMAGE? THERE’S A GREAT LE THE PLAY, WHICH OSR SAYS, ‘I SAY ABOUT MYSELF BEFORE THEY N. I MAKE THEM LGH, BUT I HAVE THE LAST ONE.’ WHICH IS SO PROFOUND TO ME. WHAT HE DID BY OPENLY DISCSG AND MAKG JOK WAS OWN BEFORE ANYONE ELSE ULD. I THK THAT IS SO SAVVY TO DO THAT, PECIALLY BACK THEN.YOU’VE ATTEND THE TONYS AS A NOMEE AND YOU’VE ALSO SERVED AS HOST. WHICH DO YOU PREFER?I N ONLY SPEAK TO MY OWN EXPERIENCE, BUT I WILL NEVER HOST AN AWARD SHOW AGA. IT WAS NICE, BUT PEOPLE ARE MORE TERTED SEEG THE [MIL] NUMBERS AND WATCHG THE NOME THAN WATCHG A HOST E OUT AND DO A FUNNY B. THEY’RE LIKE, ‘LET’S GET ON WH THE SHOW.’ AND BY THE WAY, I OPENED THE SHOW WH A LTLE ‘RHAPSODY BLUE.’ [WHEN WE SPOKE, THE WRERS STRIKE THREATENED TO NCEL THE TONY AWARDS CEREMONY. THE WRERS GUILD AGREED NOT TO PICKET, ALLOWG THE SHOW TO GO ON.] WILL & GRACE HAD SOME OF THE BT WRERS THE BS. I ASSUME YOU SUPPORT THEM THEIR STRIKE?OF URSE I DO. DO ANYBODY SAY THE OPPOSE? YOU HAVE A BOOK G OUT LATER THIS MONTH, TIME OUT, WHICH IS A G-OF-AGE, G OUT STORY ABOUT A HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE. ARE YOU TRYG TO GET BANNED?[LGHS] MY HBAND HAS SAID, ‘AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE WHEREVER BOOKS AREN’T BANNED.’ I STARTED THIS ABOUT FOUR YEARS AGO. MY PRODUCG PARTNER TODD MILLER AND I GREW UP CHIGO DIFFERENT SUBURBS. TODD WAS A GAY GUY TO SPORTS, AND I WAS A GAY GUY TO THE ARTS. WE WERE HAVG A NVERSATN ABOUT WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE HAD WE KNOWN EACH OTHER HIGH SCHOOL? WHAT WOULD THAT RELATNSHIP HAVE BEEN LIKE? WE TOOK THAT IA AND HEIGHTENED , MAKG THE CHARACTER THE NO. 1 BASKETBALL PLAYER THE STATE OF GEIA WHO OUT AT A PEP RALLY AND HOW HIS FAY, TEAMMAT AND THE TOWN WOULD REACT TO THAT, AND HOW THAT WOULD CHANGE HIS TRAJECTORY ABOUT GOG TO SPORTS. WE PARTNERED WH AN CREDIBLE WRER, CARLYN GREENWALD. YOUR BOOK IS G OUT AT A TIME WHEN BOOK BANNG, PECIALLY BOOKS ALG WH LGBTQ CHARACTERS AND ISSU, IS ALARMGLY ON THE RISE. THE BANNERS ARE EMBOLNED AND CREASGLY ANT. WE’VE E A LONG WAY, BUT THERE’S STILL A LONG WAY TO GO. IT IS MDBLOWG. I FEEL LIKE WE’RE GOG BACKWARDS.MORE GREAT STORI FROM VANY FAIRRILEY KEOUGH ON GROWG UP PRLEY, INHERG GRACELAND, AND MORECAN YOU NAME THE FILM THAT LNCHED BRIE LARSON, RAMI MALEK, AND MORE?THE 25 BT SHOWS ON NETFLIX TO WATCH RIGHT NOWTHE ABSOLUTELY WILST DETAILS OF THE GOVERNMENT’S LATT INDICTMENT AGAST DONALD TMPIVANKA TMP IS NOT LETTG HER DAD’S MOUNTG LEGAL WO RU HER SUMMERINSI ETON COLLEGE, HARRY AND WILLIAM’S POSH ALMA MATERHAS THE HAMPTONS FALLY FOUND ITS GREAT EQUALIZER?FROM THE ARCHIVE: TOO HEPBURN FOR HOLLYWOOD (2006)DONALD LIEBENSON
• WILL AND GRACE STAR CONFIRMS HE’S GAY
• 'Q-FORCE': SEAN HAY ON BRGG 'GAY JAM BOND' TO NETFLIX WH ANIMATED SPY EDY

IS SEAN HAY GAY, WHO IS THE HBAND, HOW MUCH IS HE WORTH?

To improve his chanc of succs the entertament dtry, Hay moved to Los Angel 1995, and two years later he ma a big h wh his role as Jack McFarland, an extravagant gay man Will & Grace.

Is He Gay, Who is The Hband? Sean Hay was ma popular by a gay role, and nsequently, his sexualy was one of the ma topics of nversatn whenever the actor’s name me up. Hay’ homosexualy was somethg of an open secret Hollywood until 2010 when he first hted that he was gay.

SEAN HAY REGRETS NOT COMG OUT AS GAY DURG ‘WILL & GRACE’ FIRST RUN

Hay has always been gay sce his high school days. Sean Hay is openg up about when he cid to e out as gay.

Audienc know Sean Hay stars as the hilar and nfint gay man Jack McFarland on NBC’s Will & Grace. '”In the s’s send go-around, his character attempted to break out his gay grandson om nversn mp, and ached the child on embracg his te growg up, Hay didn’t always have that kd of support om his own fay. “I kept hidn, the fact that I was high school plays, om my brothers and my fay bee this is 1986, beg gay then was different, ” he says.

“PROBABLY THE HARST THG I’VE DONE”: SEAN HAY ON BRGG OSR LEVANT BACK TO LIFE  GOOD NIGHT, OSRTHE EMMY AWARD–WNG ACTOR SPEAKS WH VANY FAIR ABOUT HIS “EPLY GRATIFYG” TONY NOMATN AFTER WORKG ON THE PROJECT “ON AND OFF FOR OVER 20 YEARS.”BY DONALD LIEBENSONMAY 18, 2023BEN RAPPAPORT, SEAN HAY AND PETER GROSZ GOOD NIGHT, OSR AT THE BELAS THEATER NEW YORK.BY SARA KLWICH/THE NEW YORK TIM/RX. SAVE THIS STORYSAVESAVE THIS STORYSAVEON MAY 2, SEAN HAY EMERGED OM HIS BEDROOM TO THE LIVG ROOM, WHERE HIS HBAND, STT ICENOGLE, WAS WATCHG TELEVISN. ICENOGLE HAD BREAKG NEWS. “YOU’VE BEEN NOMATED,” HE SAID. HAY, STILL WIPG THE SLEEP OM HIS EY, RPOND, “FOR WHAT?”“WHAT” WAS A TONY AWARD—HAY’S SEND NOMATN—FOR HIS VIRTUOSO PERFORMANCE AS OSR LEVANT THE PLAY, GOOD NIGHT, OSR, WHICH DRAMATIZ A LONG NIGHT’S JOURNEY TO THE PSYCHE-SRRED SOUL OF LEVANT, NOW OBSCURE BUT ONCE A STAR OF THE SCREEN (AN AMERIN PARIS), THE NCERT STAGE (THE CLASSILLY TRAED PIANIST WAS REVERED AS THE PREMIER TERPRETER OF HIS IEND, GEE GERSHW), AND THE TALK/GAME SHOW CIRCU, WHERE HIS LACERATG QUIPS (MANY SELF-PRETG AND AIMED AT HIS OWN MENTAL ILLNS) WERE THE 1950S EQUIVALENT OF OMG (“I KNEW DORIS DAY BEFORE SHE WAS A VIRG,” IS ONE OF THIS MOST QUOTED).GOOD NIGHT, OSR, WRTEN BY PULZER PRIZE WNER DOUG WRIGHT AND DIRECTED BY LISA PETERSON, REENACTS A 1958 SWEEPS WEEK APPEARANCE ON THE TONIGHT SHOW, THEN HOSTED BY JACK PAAR (BEN RAPPAPORT), WHO LOOKED AT LEVANT AS RATGS GOLD, AND HE STOKED TENSN OVER WHETHER THIS WOULD BE THE NIGHT LEVANT WOULD GO ONE PILL OVER THE LE. (“TO PUT DLY,” PAAR ONCE TRODUCED HIM, “HE’S AS NERVO AS HE IS CLEVER. FOR EVERY PEARL THAT OUT OF HIS MOUTH, A PILL GO . I ASK YOU TO KEEP THIS MD.”)FOR THIS RISKY LIVE TV APPEARANCE, LEVANT’S LONG-SUFFERG WIFE (EY BERGYL), ARRANG A FOUR-HOUR FURLOUGH OM THE PSYCHIATRIC FACILY TO WHICH SHE HAD HIM MTED. THE CREASGLY PILL-SPERATE LEVANT BOTH FALLS AND RIS TO THE OCSN, AND, THE PLAY’S EMOTNAL CLIMAX, KEEPS HIS MONS AT BAY TO TRIUMPHANTLY PERFORM GERSHW’S “RHAPSODY BLUE.”LEVANT IS FUNNY, Y, (WHEN PAAR ASKS WHAT HE DO FOR EXERCISE, LEVANT RPONDS, “I STUMBLE AND I FALL TO A A”), BUT THE ROLE IS A DRAMATIC PARTURE FOR HAY, WHO IS BT KNOWN FOR HIS INIC EMMY-WNG WILL & GRACE CHARACTER, JACK, A KTEN-WH-A-WHIP NARCISSIST WH A QUIP FOR ALL OCSNS.HIS TRANSFORMATN, PRAISED CHIGO TRIBUNE CRIC CHRIS JON, IS “ONE EP DIVE OF A STAR-TURN, AN ALL-NSUMG (AND NOTABLY ALL-NSUMED) PIECE OF ACTG THAT REVEALS THGS HAY THAT MOST OF HIS WILL & GRACE FANS WILL BE ENTIRELY GOBSMACKED TO DISVER HE HAS HIS ARSENAL.”THIS, HAY TOLD VANY FAIR, WAS THE CHALLENGE THAT DROVE HIM TO SPEND THE LAST TWO S TRYG TO BRG OSR LEVANT BACK TO LIFE.(THIS TERVIEW HAS BEEN EDED FOR CLARY)VANY FAIR: WHAT WAS YOUR REACTN TO THE TONY NOMATN?SEAN HAY: I LLAPSED ON THE UCH. I ULDN’T BELIEVE . IT WAS AN OUT OF BODY EXPERIENCE. IT’S SUCH AN HONOR, AND HOW REWARDG TO JT BE REGNIZED FOR SOMETHG THAT YOU’VE BEEN WORKG ON AND OFF FOR OVER 20 YEARS. IT’S AN CREDIBLE FEELG. FOR TO GO THIS WAY, ’S EPLY GRATIFYG.I RECENTLY HEARD AN TERVIEW WH NATHAN LANE WHICH TALKED ABOUT PURSUG THE TOWERG ROLE OF HICKEY EUGENE O’NEILL’S THE ICEMAN COMETH TO BREAK OUT OF THE MIL-EDY ROL FOR WHICH HE IS MOST ASSOCIATED. WERE YOU LOOKG FOR A SIAR CHALLENGE?ABSOLUTELY. I’D BEEN TOLD SO MANY TIM BY DIFFERENT PEOPLE THE ENTERTAMENT MUNY OVER THE LAST TWO S THAT I SHOULD PLAY OSR LEVANT. WA, WHAT?I DIDN’T KNOW WHO HE WAS. I WENT TO THE LOS ANGEL PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA AND LOOKED AT ARCHIVAL FOOTAGE OF HIM. I THOUGHT HE WAS FASCATG AND SO FUNNY. PEOPLE SAW SOMETHG ELSE ME BEYOND MY CHARACTER OM WILL & GRACE. I BELIEVED , TOO.  I JT NEED THE RIGHT VEHICLE TO BREAK OUT. OTHER JOBS HAPPENED, TIME WENT ON. OTHER PEOPLE, OUT OF NOWHERE WOULD SAY, ‘HAVE YOU EVER HEARD OF OSR LEVANT?’ I WAS LIKE, ‘WOW, THIS IS SO BIZARRE.’ I LISTENED TO THE UNIVERSE AND VELOPED [THIS PROJECT]. LONG STORY SHORT—TOO LATE—23 YEARS LATER, HERE WE ARE. MOST POPULARRILEY KEOUGH ON GROWG UP PRLEY, LOSG LISA MARIE, AND INHERG GRACELANDBY BRT HENNEMUTHDONALD TMP’S LAWYER CAN’T STOP GOG ON TV AND MAKG DONALD TMP LOOK RIDICULOLY GUILTY OF THE CRIM HE’S BEEN ACCED OFBY BS LEV“DOPEY AND CONSTUTNALLY DUB”: LEGAL EXPERTS BLAST JUDGE AILEEN CANNON’S LATT PRO-TMP RULGSBY BS LEVWHAT ABOUT LEVANT RONATED WH YOU?I WAS FASCATED BY HIM. PEOPLE WHO KNEW OSR REVERE HIM. I N’T REMEMBER WHO WAS—SOMEBODY FAMO—SAID IF OSR LEVANT DIDN’T EXIST, HE ULD NOT BE IMAGED. FROM AN ACTOR’S STANDPOT, I WAS RPONDG TO THE THGS I ULD TAP TO THAT WE HAVE MON. WE’RE BOTH CLASSILLY TRAED PIANISTS, WE BOTH HAVE A SENSE OF HUMOR—I DON’T KNOW IF ME IS ANYWHERE NEAR HIS, THAT’S NOT FOR ME TO JUDGE. AND HE DIRECTLY SUFFERED OM MENTAL ILLNS AND ADDICTN, AND EVER SCE I WAS BORN, I WAS AN OBSERVER OF . EVERYTHG JT SEEMED TO LE UP WH WHAT I WANTED TO DO TO CHALLENGE MYSELF AS AN ACTOR. FOR PEOPLE TO EXPERIENCE HIM NOW AND TO BRG HIM BACK TO LIFE TO THE ZEGEIST OF AMERIN THEATER IS JT A PRIVILEGE.FROM THE PLAY’S PRE-BROADWAY N CHIGO TO THE BELAS THEATRE, HOW HAS YOUR PORTRAYAL OF OSR EVOLVED?I WOULDN’T BORE ANYBODY THIS TERVIEW, BUT YOU DO FD MOMENTS THE PLAY WHERE YOU DISVER TY THGS THAT SOMETIM PAY OFF BIG WAYS AND SOMETIM LTLE WAYS, BUT THEY ARE WS FOR THE ACTOR. BUT I THK WE LUCKED OUT WH DOUG’S WRG, LISA PETERSON AND A PHENOMENAL ST AND PRODUCERS WHO KNOW WHAT THEY’RE DOG. I FEEL LIKE THIS IS LIGHTNG A BOTTLE. IT’S A MOUNTA YOU CLIMB WH EVERY PERFORMANCE. CAN YOU LEAVE OSR BACK AT THE BELAS OR IS HE HARD TO SHAKE?THERE’S ONE THG THAT I N’T STOP DOG, WHICH IS PUTTG MY HAND MY LEFT POCKET, WHICH I’M DOG RIGHT NOW. OSR SO EQUENTLY ON THE JACK PAAR SHOW WOULD HAVE HIS HAND SPECIFILLY HIS LEFT POCKET. I DON’T KNOW WHAT THAT WAS ABOUT, BUT I KEEP MY LEFT HAND MY POCKET AND I’M LIKE, ‘COME ON, GET THAT OUT OF THERE.’IN THE MIL PROMIS, PROMIS, YOU PLAYED A ROLE LIBLY ASSOCIATED WH JACK LEMMON OM THE MOVIE, THE APARTMENT. HERE, YOU’RE PORTRAYG AN ACTUAL PERSON, ALBE ONE WHO TODAY IS NOT GENERALLY WELL-KNOWN. WHICH IS MORE CHALLENGG? OH, GOD, GOOD NIGHT, OSR IS PROBABLY THE HARST THG I’VE DONE; NOT PROBABLY, IS. YOU TRY YOUR HARST TO EMBODY THE PERSON YOU ARE PLAYG. IT’S A WONRFUL THG TO FD SUCH A GREAT GUY AND A GREAT CHARACTER WHO IS SO RICH AND TO BRG EMOTNS GOG ON AT ALL TIM.BEYOND THE PALEY CENTER, WHAT OTHER REARCH DID YOU DO?I READ HIS BOOKS. HE’S AN CREDIBLE WRER, OSR. [PIANIST] MICHAEL FESTE IS AN OSR LEVANT AFICNADO. HE KNOWS EVERYTHG ABOUT OSR. HE SHARED WH ME HIS OSR ARCHIVE, CLUDG THGS THAT AREN’T PUBLIC, RERDGS OF HIM TALKG AT PARTI. MICHAEL HAS BEEN SO KD TO SHARE THEM. SOMETIM, I LISTEN TO SOME OF THE THGS THAT MICHAEL SENT ME, JT TO FD THE VOICE AND THE CHARACTER RIGHT BEFORE I GO ON. BETWEEN OLYMPIAN SIMONE BIL AND TED LASSO, MENTAL HEALTH IS DISCSED MORE OPENLY TODAY THAN WAS WHEN LEVANT JOKED ABOUT HIS PRCRIPTNS ON THE TONIGHT SHOW. DO YOU THK HE WOULD HAVE BEEN HIS ELEMENT TODAY?MOST POPULARRILEY KEOUGH ON GROWG UP PRLEY, LOSG LISA MARIE, AND INHERG GRACELANDBY BRT HENNEMUTHDONALD TMP’S LAWYER CAN’T STOP GOG ON TV AND MAKG DONALD TMP LOOK RIDICULOLY GUILTY OF THE CRIM HE’S BEEN ACCED OFBY BS LEV“DOPEY AND CONSTUTNALLY DUB”: LEGAL EXPERTS BLAST JUDGE AILEEN CANNON’S LATT PRO-TMP RULGSBY BS LEVY. IT BLOWS MY MD WHAT A PNEER HE WAS. HE SPOKE SO OPENLY ABOUT HIS MENTAL HEALTH ISSU ON LIVE TELEVISN THE ‘50S AND ‘60S. CAN YOU IMAGE? THERE’S A GREAT LE THE PLAY, WHICH OSR SAYS, ‘I SAY ABOUT MYSELF BEFORE THEY N. I MAKE THEM LGH, BUT I HAVE THE LAST ONE.’ WHICH IS SO PROFOUND TO ME. WHAT HE DID BY OPENLY DISCSG AND MAKG JOK WAS OWN BEFORE ANYONE ELSE ULD. I THK THAT IS SO SAVVY TO DO THAT, PECIALLY BACK THEN.YOU’VE ATTEND THE TONYS AS A NOMEE AND YOU’VE ALSO SERVED AS HOST. WHICH DO YOU PREFER?I N ONLY SPEAK TO MY OWN EXPERIENCE, BUT I WILL NEVER HOST AN AWARD SHOW AGA. IT WAS NICE, BUT PEOPLE ARE MORE TERTED SEEG THE [MIL] NUMBERS AND WATCHG THE NOME THAN WATCHG A HOST E OUT AND DO A FUNNY B. THEY’RE LIKE, ‘LET’S GET ON WH THE SHOW.’ AND BY THE WAY, I OPENED THE SHOW WH A LTLE ‘RHAPSODY BLUE.’ [WHEN WE SPOKE, THE WRERS STRIKE THREATENED TO NCEL THE TONY AWARDS CEREMONY. THE WRERS GUILD AGREED NOT TO PICKET, ALLOWG THE SHOW TO GO ON.] WILL & GRACE HAD SOME OF THE BT WRERS THE BS. I ASSUME YOU SUPPORT THEM THEIR STRIKE?OF URSE I DO. DO ANYBODY SAY THE OPPOSE? YOU HAVE A BOOK G OUT LATER THIS MONTH, TIME OUT, WHICH IS A G-OF-AGE, G OUT STORY ABOUT A HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE. ARE YOU TRYG TO GET BANNED?[LGHS] MY HBAND HAS SAID, ‘AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE WHEREVER BOOKS AREN’T BANNED.’ I STARTED THIS ABOUT FOUR YEARS AGO. MY PRODUCG PARTNER TODD MILLER AND I GREW UP CHIGO DIFFERENT SUBURBS. TODD WAS A GAY GUY TO SPORTS, AND I WAS A GAY GUY TO THE ARTS. WE WERE HAVG A NVERSATN ABOUT WHAT WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE HAD WE KNOWN EACH OTHER HIGH SCHOOL? WHAT WOULD THAT RELATNSHIP HAVE BEEN LIKE? WE TOOK THAT IA AND HEIGHTENED , MAKG THE CHARACTER THE NO. 1 BASKETBALL PLAYER THE STATE OF GEIA WHO OUT AT A PEP RALLY AND HOW HIS FAY, TEAMMAT AND THE TOWN WOULD REACT TO THAT, AND HOW THAT WOULD CHANGE HIS TRAJECTORY ABOUT GOG TO SPORTS. WE PARTNERED WH AN CREDIBLE WRER, CARLYN GREENWALD. YOUR BOOK IS G OUT AT A TIME WHEN BOOK BANNG, PECIALLY BOOKS ALG WH LGBTQ CHARACTERS AND ISSU, IS ALARMGLY ON THE RISE. THE BANNERS ARE EMBOLNED AND CREASGLY ANT. WE’VE E A LONG WAY, BUT THERE’S STILL A LONG WAY TO GO. IT IS MDBLOWG. I FEEL LIKE WE’RE GOG BACKWARDS.MORE GREAT STORI FROM VANY FAIRRILEY KEOUGH ON GROWG UP PRLEY, INHERG GRACELAND, AND MORECAN YOU NAME THE FILM THAT LNCHED BRIE LARSON, RAMI MALEK, AND MORE?THE 25 BT SHOWS ON NETFLIX TO WATCH RIGHT NOWTHE ABSOLUTELY WILST DETAILS OF THE GOVERNMENT’S LATT INDICTMENT AGAST DONALD TMPIVANKA TMP IS NOT LETTG HER DAD’S MOUNTG LEGAL WO RU HER SUMMERINSI ETON COLLEGE, HARRY AND WILLIAM’S POSH ALMA MATERHAS THE HAMPTONS FALLY FOUND ITS GREAT EQUALIZER?FROM THE ARCHIVE: TOO HEPBURN FOR HOLLYWOOD (2006)DONALD LIEBENSON

I associated, like society tght me, that theater was for gays, and was for sissi, and thgs like that. ”It wasn’t until Hay was 18 that he told his fay he’s gay. “She beme ted and had iends who [were] gay people, ” Hay says.

“There’s so many more exampl now to help people and give them tools to munite to kids and their fai that beg gay is as normal as beg straight. "We got ath threats, [people] uld fd out where I lived, and I was playg a gay character a big h show. I didn't have the urage and the strength at such a young age to speak on behalf of the gay muny.

WILL AND GRACE STAR CONFIRMS HE’S GAY

"Now, however, the 48-year-old actor is openly gay and has been married to his partner Stt Icenogle sce 2014.

Gay. The Seventi saw many women's rights, gay rights, and environmental movements.

'Q-FORCE': SEAN HAY ON BRGG 'GAY JAM BOND' TO NETFLIX WH ANIMATED SPY EDY

Is Sean Hay gay? Probably the bt episo of the first season was "Will Works Out" where Will is terrified that one of his clients would fd out he was gay, and his own ternal homophobia shone through when he lled Jack a "fag.