Well-Known Historical Figures You Didn't Know Were LGBTQ

Eleanor Roosevelt is noted in the history books as being one of the most influential First Ladies of the United States, but things were a bit more complicated behind the scenes. Her husband, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, had an affair in the 1920s with his secretary, causing an irreparable rift in the marriage. They did, however, agree to remain together for the sake of their careers and public image.

The affair was discovered when Eleanor uncovered letters written between the President and his secretary. Eleanor then began a relationship with a reporter, Lorena Hickok, who wasn't afraid to let people know her sexual preference. The two were inseparable and exchanged thousands of letters, leading historians to speculate after the fact that theirs was a love-match that was incomparable

Today, Jane Addams would be known as a lesbian and allowed to embrace it. A popular suffragette and social activist, it is believed that her first relationship was with Ellen Starr, another social activist. It was with Starr that Jane Addams founded a settlement home for immigrants in the city of Chicago. This settlement home was called Hull House.

After that relationship came to an end, Addams began a relationship with Mary Rozet Smith, a wealthy philanthropist. The two moved in together and claimed to be married when asked. They would write to each other when away and the relationship only came to an end following the death of Mary in 1934.

Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas had one of the most celebrated romances in modern American literature. Their love story began in 1907, one day after Toklas moved to Paris. The two hosted literary salons, drawing figures such as Ernest Hemingway and Pablo Picasso. After two years, they moved in together. They spent the 1920s and 1930s traveling the world together capitalizing on their fame and fortune.

When World War II broke out they were forced to move to a country house in the French mountains. They remained a committed couple until Toklas's death in 1946. While Toklas left the majority of her estate to Stein, their relationship was not recognized by French law. This left Stein struggling financially for the rest of her life.

James Dean’s sexuality was debated throughout his career and continues to be so even after his death. At the height of his acting career, when the teenage pin-up was admired by women and men across the world, there were several rumors indicating relationships with other male actors. What was interesting was that Dean never explicitly denied this rumor.

When questioned on it once, he replied with, “No, I am not a homosexual, but I’m also not going to go through life with one hand tied behind my back.” The rumors intensified just after his unexpected death in a car accident but there hasn’t been any definitive proof of this. Although it would still be of interest now, it wouldn't be as outrageous.

Greta Garbo was an actress who was very famous during the era of silent movies. Unlike most of her peers, though, she retired early at the age of 35 and lived a private life far away from the glitz of Hollywood. Of course, the inevitable curiosity and snooping came very soon after.

While she did date several men during her life, rumors arose of relationships with women after her death in 1990 after a struggle with pneumonia. Some of the names that cropped up during rumors included Mimi Pollack, Salka Viertel, Lilyan Tashman, and Louise Brooks. Later, letters were unearthed between her and Mimi Pollack which confirmed the rumors of a relationship. Garbo would probably identify as bisexual these days.

Alan Turing is known as the man who helped the Allied forces win World War II and end it two years ahead of schedule. His genius broke the German code encryption and helped the Allies learn German plans and attacks, allowing them to predict battles, defend better, and counter.

However, it was later revealed that he was gay and as a result, he was shunned by the government. In 1952, he was arrested for ‘gross indecency,’ and given the choice between hormone treatments and serving prison time. He chose the former and the injections left him impotent and a shell of his former self. He committed suicide just two years later. In 2009, he was issued an unofficial public apology on behalf of the British government, and in 2013, Queen Elizabeth II (whose rule over Great Britain began two years before Turing died) granted him a posthumous pardon.

Leonardo da Vinci’s beautiful painting of Mona Lisa and other women are world-famous, and adding to the mystery surrounding the legendary artist are rumors that he was gay. Historians theorize that these rumors came from his two ‘sodomy’ accusations but given that Florence was a hub for queer activity in Europe, it does seem plausible.

While the rumors have, more or less, been confirmed, today, centuries after his death, there is fierce debate on whether he was active and unafraid to voice out his preference or if he liked to keep it under wraps, probably influenced by his sodomy accusations. Even noted psychologist Sigmund Freud voiced his professional opinion, stating that Da Vinci's writings indicate that he was a latent homosexual.

So far, the United States does not have an LGBTQ president, but historians have reasons to believe that 15th President James Buchanan was, in fact, gay. One key factor that is noted in their theories suggesting he was gay is that James Buchanan never married - he is actually the only US President to never have done so.

He spent most of his adult life living with another senator, Senator William Rufus King. The two were often known as “Ms. Nancy and Aunt Fancy” in Washington’s corridors and rumors were adrift as to the nature and the extent of their relationship. Another key indicator was that both men’s families may have gone to great lengths to destroy evidence of their correspondence. So, they kept their relationship private as they could.

Hudson was a prominent Hollywood star in the mid-20th century, known for his charming roles in films like Giant and Pillow Talk. However, his personal life was a well-kept secret. Hudson's homosexuality was something he hid due to the societal norms of the era, especially in Hollywood. His sexuality was made public only towards the end of his life, when he was diagnosed with AIDS in the early 1980s.

This had a significant impact as it brought attention to the AIDS crisis and humanized the disease, challenging the existing stigmas. Sadly, Hudson passed away from AIDS-related complications in 1985 but his death was a pivotal moment in the public perception of both AIDS and the LGBTQ+ community.

Walt Whitman is a famous poet, essayist, journalist and is considered the "father of free verse" due to his influence on American canon. There have long been suspicions that he was homosexual, or bisexual at the very least. Historians who have studied him believe that the secret lies in his poems.

In some of his poems, they suspect, are homoerotic elements that indicate his sexual preference. Additionally, the words of Oscar Wilde – there’s a bit about him on this list too – upon visiting Whitman are, “I have the kiss of Walt Whitman still on my lips.” It is rumored that he had relationships with British poet Edward Carpenter and Peter Doyle, whose initials Whitman disguised in his diaries as "16.4" - the numbers representing the place "P" and "D" have in the English alphabet.

As of 2023, Emperor Elagabalus, who reined in Ancient Rome in the third century from age 14 until assassination at age 18 and was known for pranks such as releasing wild animals into rooms where people were nursing their hangovers after parties, was described by one British museum as having actually been a trans woman.

The North Hertfordshire Museum announced that they had determined - thanks to Elagabalus asking in texts to be referred to as a "lady" or "wife" - that she was transgender, and they changed the pronouns in museum descriptions to match, calling it "polite". Elagabalus was also known to wear wigs and makeup, and may have also offered a reward to any doctor who could reshape his genitals into female anatomy. But it's worth noting that many historians have said that these recountings might have actually been false character smearing by his successor, who would have benefitted from the greivous insult of the time that was calling a man "womanly".

The Romans are known to have been more open-minded when it came to sexuality than the rest of (even modern) Europe but even when that is considered, the Roman Emperor Hadrian stands out, which is a marked stance from those days. His companion was Antinous, a young Greek soldier. History books note that the two spent a lot of time together hunting, fishing, or writing love letters.

Upon his lover’s death, the emperor declared him a god and Antinous was worshipped by many. Hadrian also wrote erotic poetry and an autobiography, both of which discussed his "favorite man". It is most likely that he was writing about Antinous. Early textbooks are also explicit that the relationship was sexual.

The American actor, singer, and author rose to fame in the 1950s. He was known for his roles in films such as "Battle Cry" (1955), "The Burning Hills" (1956), and "Damn Yankees!" (1958). Despite being a closeted gay man in Hollywood during a time when being openly gay was not accepted, he managed to maintain a successful career and later became an advocate for LGBTQ rights.

On July 8, 2018, three days shy of his 87th birthday, Hunter died after suffering cardiac arrest that arose from complications related to deep vein thrombosis. According to his partner, Allan Glaser, Hunter's death was "sudden and unexpected."

Laurence Olivier is one of the most famous actors of old Hollywood. He was married to three different women but was allegedly never faithful to any of them. Rumors are that some of his flings included affairs with men, something his widow confirmed during an interview after his death, stating that he had affairs with both men and women.

Some of the men he was rumored to have had an affair with include Noel Coward and Marlon Brando. Several letters were also uncovered after his death which indicated a relationship with Henry Ainley, among many other famous stars of the time. it is said that his extra-marital flings caused great infuriation among his family.

Unlike the modern world, the Greeks were very comfortable with gender fluidity and sexual preferences. Writers like Plato, Herodotus, and Athenaeus were known to have explored aspects of sexuality and Socrates was no different. He was known to have engaged in many gay romantic relationships and felt that true love could only exist between two men.

The latter was actually an excerpt from a book by Plato and tells us a lot about the prevalence of homosexuality in ancient Greece. The most common form of same-sex relationships at the time was between adult men and adolescent boys, an arrangement that is known as pederasty. In return, the man would teach and educate the boy.

Lou Reed was a distinguished musician with a career spanning five decades. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer was outspoken about his bisexuality and claimed that his parents initially tried to ‘cure him’ of his preferences using electroshock treatments. He especially singled out his father for having consented to the treatment.

He said that the experience left him feeling traumatized and caused a loss of memory but his sister has denied that he was treated for his homosexual desires. She said that her parents were not homophobic and that the treatment was for his mental illness. Reports suggest that the former songwriter for The Velvet Underground had relationships with photographer Billy Name and musician David Bowie, to name a few.

Lesley Gore is a singer who achieved fame for records like “It’s My Party,” and “California Nights,” which were released in the late sixties. In 2005, she revealed that she was a lesbian and had been in a long relationship with Lois Sasson, a jewelry designer who was famous for her unique designs.

Lesley Gore admitted that she never attempted to hide her sexual preference while working in the music industry saying, “I just kind of lived my life naturally and did what I wanted to do … I didn’t avoid anything, I didn’t put it in anybody’s face.” She championed for LGBTQ rights until her death in 2015.

Most probably recall Noel Coward being mentioned earlier in this article as a flame of Laurence Olivier. He was a playwright and a director who was known for his style, flamboyance, and wit. Similar to most, there were many rumors but he remained coy about his love life until his death in March of 1973 from a heart attack.

He would often reply to curious journalists with witty comments humoring them. However, while he kept his cards close to his chest, he did encourage his longtime partner, Graham Payne, and his secretary, Cole Lesley, to discuss his sexuality after his death. They obliged with his request and confirmed the rumors.

Actor Cesar Romero etched his name in Hollywood history with a fantastic performance as the Joker in the Batman television series, released in 1966. He was a singer and had a career that spanned almost six decades. He also liked to keep his personal life private and did not reveal much information about himself.

He only identified himself as a “confirmed bachelor” throughout his time in the spotlight. However, two years after his death, a journalist published interviews with Romero where he did confirm he was gay while also offering us an insight on what it felt like to be gay in Hollywood. The insightful interview was part of a book titled Hollywood Gays.

Oscar Wilde is easily among the most famous gay icons of all time. The author of notable works like The Importance of Being Earnest and The Picture of Dorian Gray, he took the father of his lover to trial for libel. Doing so unfortunately uncovered his own relationship with his lover. Due to this, he was imprisoned for two years of hard labor.

During his trial, he made an impassioned and arousing speech but it failed to convince the court. The two years in prison took a very heavy toll on him and he fled to France after he was released. The prison time was a key factor in his death in 1900.

Marlon Brando may be a surprising name for many due to his reputation as a womanizer. However, in his later years, he revealed that he had embarked on relationships with men. He confirmed it in a 1976 interview saying, “Homosexuality is so much in fashion, it no longer makes news. Like a large number of men, I, too, have had homosexual experiences, and I am not ashamed.”

“I have never paid much attention to what people think about me. But if there is someone who is convinced that Jack Nicholson and I are lovers, may they continue to do so. I find it amusing.” Rumors often linked him to Wally Cox, comedian Richard Pryor, and even Laurence Olivier.

Sally Ride made history when she set off to space. She was the first American woman to make it to space in 1983 and third in world history after two Russians. She was also the first gay astronaut, but this little factor was unknown until after her death almost three decades later.

After she passed away from a long battle with pancreatic cancer, her partner revealed that they had been in a relationship for more than 27 years. Tam O’Shaughnessy went on to reveal that the two had written six children’s books together - most of which were met with critical acclaim.

Richard the Lionheart easily ranks as the most popular English king, predominantly due to him featuring in the story of Robin Hood. However, there was one tiny little detail that never made the storybooks and that is the fact that he had a gay relationship that altered the course of history.

The King had a very passionate relationship with King Phillip II of France and this was key to the creation of an alliance between England and France, leading to the two countries launching the Third Crusade. However, they fell apart in the middle of the war and the alliance broke.

Graham Chapman made his name as part of the Monty Python comedy troupe and he made headlines again when he came out as gay. One of highest-profile British men to come out, he continued to use his celebrity status to bring attention to the difficulties faced by gay men.

It was in 1966 that he met David Sherlock. The two began a relationship and dated up until the death of Chapman in 1989 to cancer. He is known as a trailblazer for gay rights in the UK and his efforts to bring awareness to the gay community have led to him being celebrated even in 2020.

The Secret (or Not So Much) LGBTQ Stars of Golden Era HollywoodHollywood in the Golden Era was a fickle place. Studio heads falsified events, arranged marriages, and had clandestine coverups, all in the name of ratings. Many of the stars lived double lives between what we saw and how they secretly were in real life. The truth, often seen in rumors, was only confirmed in death. Keep reading for our list of the stars that lived with sexual secrets.

Anthony Perkins, best known for his portrayal of Norman Bates in the film Psycho, was a married father of two. Rumors circulated that Perkins had many affairs with men throughout his marriage. The most prevalent was his alleged affair with fellow actor Tab Hunter, but numerous sources revealed that Perkins was constantly looking for handsome young men.

Scotty Bowers, a Hollywood pimp, claimed, "He always wanted someone different," and would ask, "Who do you have for me for tomorrow night that will surprise me? Anything really new?" Perkins was diagnosed with HIV and died at the age of 60 from complications. His death was shocking to many adoring fans, as his medical condition was private and not divulged in public. He was with his family when he died. His wife, Berry Berenson, died on American Airlines Flight 11 during the September 11 terrorist attack.

James Dean tragically died as his career started taking off. He had only made three films but was, and remains, a household name. On September, 30th 1955, the 24-year-old actor died in a car crash. According to Hedda Hopper, a gossip column writer, Dean evaded drafting during the Korean war by kissing the medic. This admission brought up many questions surrounding Dean's sexuality.

When asked if he was homosexual, Dean replied, "No, I'm not homosexual, but I am also not going through life with one hand tied behind my back." Rumors had Dean involved in a BDSM relationship with acting legend, Marlon Brando. In the book James Dean: Tomorrow Never Comes, biographers Darwin Porter and Danforth Prince wrote, "they were definitely a couple." Advertising executive Rogers Brackett also claimed to have had a relationship with Dean and stated they were in love.

The 1934 romantic comedy It Happened One Night won five Academy Awards and starred Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert in leading roles. Both Gable and Colbert had their private lives exposed in the tabloids. After she died in 1996, rumors circulated that Colbert was bi-sexual. Even though she had been married twice, the word was that she did not spend much time at home with either husband and had had an affair with Marlene Dietrich.

Clark Gable, also known as "The King Of Hollywood" due to his immense fame, married five times and fathered two children. He was a playboy, often making advances on up-and-coming actresses. Although David Brett, biographer of It Happened One Night, later describes Gable as homophobic, he claims when Gable was starting in showbiz, he was "gay for pay" doing sexual favors to advance his career.

Adrian Adolph Greenburg was a famous costume designer known for his work on the costumes for the film, The Wizard of Oz and his designs for famous actresses Greta Garbo, Katherine Hepburn, and Joan Crawford. Greenburg reached fame where people referred to him by his first name only in the fashion and entertainment circles.

In 1939, Adrian married Janet Gaynor, an Oscar Award-winning actress believed to be lesbian. Rumors circulated that it was an arranged marriage to discredit accusations of the couple being gay. Nevertheless, the couple remained together until Adrian died in 1959. They had a son, who upholds the couple had a real marriage and disputes any other claims. Despite this, Diana McLellan wrote about them in her book, The Girls: Sappho Goes to Hollywood, and William Mann analyzed them in Behind the Screen: How Gays and Lesbians Shaped Hollywood, 1910-1969.

Barbara Stanwyck was a very driven person, excelling in her career and receiving numerous accolades during her 60 years of acting. Stanwyck was married to both Robert Taylor and Frank Fay. However, both marriages were reportedly "lavender" marriages set up by the studio to alleviate the lesbian rumors. Speculation turned to her being bi-sexual. Biographer Axel Madsen claims she was "Hollywood's biggest closeted lesbian."

Diana McLellan claimed that Tallulah Bankhead confirmed they had an intimate relationship, but Stanwyck never revealed her sexual orientation. However, in an interview with Boze Hadleigh, he asked if "bisexuality was very widespread among female stars during Hollywood's heyday," to which she replied, "I heard that Dietrich, Garbo, most of the girls from Europe, swing either way. Then I found out it's true." He jumped at her response, wanting to know: "You found out?" but she refused to say any more on the topic.

Cary Grant was a good-looking British-American actor famous for his roles in North by Northwest and His Girl Friday. He was known as a ladies' man of the 1930s. However, he wasn't only a ladies' man. Before becoming a star, Grant reportedly lived with Australian costume designer Orry-Kelly after being evicted from a boarding home because he couldn't pay his rent. Grant did numerous jobs, including being an escort and a stilt-walker.

Kelly was seven years older than the 20-year-old Grant, formerly known as Archibald Leach. The two allegedly had an on-off relationship spanning three decades that was said to be occasionally violent. Katherine Thompson claimed that Grant once threw Kelly out of a moving vehicle during an argument. Grant had five unsuccessful marriages, which did not curb the rumors of his sexuality.

Actor Randolph Scott was dubbed one-half of the "merry bachelors," and Cary Grant was the other half. The two actors met when filming Hot Saturday in 1932. They lived together on and off for 12 years between marriages in Bachelor Hall, a mansion in Los Feliz.

Photos of Scott and Grant suggest they may have been more than just friends. They met Scotty Bowers while they were both married. Bowers, a Hollywood pimp, reportedly arranged numerous gay hookups said that the marital status of the two "didn't stop the three of us from becoming very closely acquainted." It makes you wonder just what their acquaintance entailed.

Tall, dark, and handsome are three words used to describe this Cuban-American actor. Besides regularly playing the role of a Latin lover, Romero also played the Joker in the original Batman TV series. Multiple pictures placed him out and about with beautiful women regularly. Though not as public, his involvement with the opposite sex was not quite a secret.

According to reporter Boze Hadleigh, Romero enjoyed a "wide-ranging gay sex life," he also claimed that Romero had sex with Desi Arnaz from I Love Lucy and was in a relationship with actor Tyrone Power. Comedian Gilbert Gottfried revealed outrageous gossip about Romero: "I don't know if it's true ... I don't care. I want it to be true ... Someone said that [Romero] was turned on by dropping his pants and having young boys throw orange slices at his a*." to HuffPost*.

Dirk Bogarde, an English actor, served as an intelligence officer in the British army in World War II. In a 1986 television interview, he told Above The Title: "After the war I always knew that nothing, nothing, could ever be as bad ... but nothing could frighten me any more, I mean, no man could frighten me any more, no Director ... nothing could be as bad as the war, or the things I saw in the war."

Bogarde never admitted to being gay himself but was not afraid to portray gay characters in films. He played the victim in the 1961 movie of the same name. The movie, Victim, was at the forefront of films that explored homosexuality and said to be the first film to speak the term. For 40 years, Bogarde lived with his friend and business manager, Anthony Forwood.

Dorothy Arzner was a strong-willed, free-spirited person. She grew up surrounded by celebrities who frequented her father's restaurant in San Francisco. She studied medicine for two years at the University of Southern California before entering the entertainment field; after World War I, vacancies were available in the film industry. In an interview published in Cinema, she said: "It was possible for even inexperienced people to have an opportunity if they showed signs of ability or knowledge."

She started editing films, and then when the timing was right, she threatened to leave if she did not get a movie to direct within two weeks. Arzner was the first and only female director of a sound film during her career. Arzner did not shy from her sexuality and had a 40-year relationship with Marion Morgan. She also reportedly had flings with Joan Crawford and Katherine Hepburn.

George Cukor started his career in the New York theaters before Hollywood. Although Cukor never spoke about his sexuality, he was openly gay. Cukor made a name for himself, directing films involving women in any manner. He received the nickname "the Woman's director" as he had such a great rapport with the actresses; he related to them in such a way that the outcome was extraordinary.

Initially, the studio hired Cukor to direct the classic movie, Gone With The Wind. He had tutored Olivia de Havilland and Vivien Leigh in their roles for months before being asked to leave as lead actor Clark Gable had a problem working with Cukor because he was gay. The rumor is that when Gable was an escort early on in his career, Cukor was a client of his, and Gable was scared that people would find out.

Swedish-born spinster Greta Garbo starred in 27 films in her relatively short time in Hollywood before retiring. She was a private person and did not like the media attention received as an actress. In addition to her public relationship with John Gilbert, there were rumors of many leading ladies linked with Garbo.

Diana McLellan, author of The Girls: Sappho Goes to Hollywood, believes that she had a passionate love affair with Marlene Dietrich while in Berlin before the two were household names. McLellan also claims to have love letters from Garbo to Mercedes da Costa and actress Mimi Pollack. Garbo and Pollack met in drama school, but it seems Garbo never got over Pollack and wrote to her after she was married, saying: "I dream of seeing you and discovering whether you still care as much about your old bachelor. I love you, little Mimosa."

Before the Sexual Offences Act passed in 1967 it was a criminal offense to have a homosexual relationship in Britain. The punishment for breaking this law was life imprisonment. BBC Wales says: the "police seemed to have turned a blind eye" towards Welsh actor and composer Ivor Novello, who was openly gay, even if he couldn't admit it. Biographer Donald Spoto told The Guardian, Novello was "never, on or off the set, especially shy about his homosexual life," which led to critics labeling him as "effeminate" and "overly pretty."

Novello's sexuality was an open secret. The approval of the Sexual Offences Act was a great victory for all gay men as it allowed for private, consensual displays of same-sex affection for men over 21. Novello had relationships with fellow actor Bobby Andrews and poet Siegfried Sassoon. Andrews and Novello were companions from 1916 until Novello died in 1951.

Janet Gaynor was the first woman to receive an Academy Award for Best Actress for her roles in 7th Heaven (1927), Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927), and Street Angel (1928) in 1929. She was married to Adrian, the gay costume designer mentioned earlier, for 20 years.

Rumors circulated of Gaynor being in a relationship with Mary Martin. The gossip was reiterated by actor Bob Cummings when he wrote, "Janet Gaynor's husband was Adrian, but her wife was Mary Martin." in Behind the Screen: How Gays and Lesbians Shaped Hollywood.

We all know people were more conservative early on in the 20th century. The studios would arrange for their top stars surrounded by controversy to get married to thwart the rumors regarding their sexuality. That is what they did in the case of Jean Acker and Rudolph Valentino. However, the two actors also seem to embrace the marriage for the convenience and mutual benefit the nuptials provided them.

Acker was more famous than Valentino when they married, so Valentino felt the marriage would boost his career. Acker was allegedly in a lesbian love triangle when they married and thought it would quiet the potentially damaging rumors surrounding her sexuality. Popsugar reported that the couple never consummated their marriage. It was rumored Acker immediately regretted her decision and even slammed the door in Valentino's face on their wedding night. They divorced after two months.

Joan Crawford was a legendary actress of the early 20th century. She appeared in over 80 movies in a career that spanned 50 years, winning an Academy Award for Best Actress in the 1945 Mildred Pierce. Crawford, nicknamed a maneater, had a voracious appetite for men. Rumors that circulated after her death say she quite fancied women too.

Crawford allegedly had affairs with Marilyn Monroe, Martha Raye, Barbara Stanwyck, and Marion Morgan, a little-known actress. Crawford's fourth husband was Pepsi CEO, Alfred Steele. During their marriage, she did extensive traveling promoting Pepsi. When he died in 1959, the Board of Pepsi elected her to join the ranks. Crawford had five adopted children. The eldest two felt that she was strict and abusive; in 1978, Christina Crawford published Mommie Dearest, which alleged that Crawford emotionally and physically abused Christina and her brother Christopher.

Scotty Bowers was a Hollywood pimp and author of Full Service. He said he and Hepburn had developed a great friendship during the 50 years they had known each other. Bowers said a typical request from Hepburn would be: "When you get a chance, do you think you can find a nice young dark-haired girl for me? Someone that's not too heavily made-up."

He adds that Hepburn would get easily bored and would only see the same woman once or maybe twice. Bowers had probably hooked her up with about 150 women. However, there was one girl that lasted. Barbara was 17 years old when they first met. The two reportedly had a relationship that spanned 49 years. It was reported that Barbara received a letter and check in the mail for $100,000 in June 2003 from Hepburn's attorneys, months before Hepburn died.

Lizabeth Scott was a product of discrimination. In 1954, Howard Rushmore of Confidential gossip magazine printed an expośe on Scott and her penchant for "baritone babes," a term used to describe lesbians. Rushmore claimed Scott "took up with Frede, the city's most notorious lesbian queen and the operator of a night club devoted exclusively to entertaining deviates like herself." while she was in Cannes.

Scott was an accomplished actress with talent exceeding her colleagues, described as a head-turner with a "smokey voice" and a sultriness similar to Lauren Bacall. Bob Thomas commented during her screen test in 1945: "Her throaty voice may well make Lauren Bacall sound like a mezzo soprano." Unfortunately, even with so much going for her, the backlash from the article was irreparable. Scott sued Confidential magazine, but her career still fizzled out due to the damage to her reputation.

Marilyn Monroe, born Norma Jeane Mortenson on June 1, 1926, was an American actress, model, and singer. She died of a drug overdose at the age of 36. Cast as the stereotypical blonde in movies like Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and How to Marry a Millionaire, she was once the most sought-after leading lady. Monroe was married three times. Her second husband, Joe DiMaggio, was New York Yankee baseball legend. Walter Winchell claimed that DiMaggio told him they divorced because Monroe preferred women.

Monroe reportedly had affairs with her fellow actresses, Barbara Stanwyck, Marlene Dietrich, Elizabeth Taylor, and Joan Crawford. She allegedly slept with her two acting tutors, Paula Strasberg and Natasha Lytess. The breakup with Lytess was brutal, and Monroe refused to take any of her calls. Speaking about their relationship, Lytess said, "She exploited those feelings as only a beautiful younger person can."

German actress and cabaret singer Marlene Dietrich was outspoken and open about her sexuality. "I am at heart a gentleman," she once said. Dietrich was not afraid to go against the grain. She would regularly wear tuxes or pants to red carpet events when it was virtually unheard of for women to wear anything other than a dress. While married to film producer Rudolf Siebert, Dietrich had numerous affairs with men and women.

Her daughter reveals in 1992 that her mother had dalliances with men as "a way of controlling and manipulating them," not for pleasure, but her flings with the fairer sex were "much more satisfying for her." Film critic Kenneth Tynan remarked, Dietrich "has sex without gender." Dietrich once had a relationship with Greta Garbo that ended so badly that Garbo "refused to acknowledge Dietrich's existence for the rest of their lives."

Marlon Brando's career spanned 60 years, and he received many accolades: two Academy Awards, three BAFTAs, and two Golden Globes. During his time on the big screen, Marlon Brando has had his fair share of sex with men and women. Brando married three times but reportedly had relationships with Cary Grant, Montgomery Clift, Sir John Gielgud, Rock Hudson, and most note-worthy, James Dean.

In 1976, during an interview with Gary Carey, Brando said: "Homosexuality is so much in fashion, it no longer makes news. Like a large number of men, I, too, have had homosexual experiences, and I am not ashamed. I have never paid much attention to what people think about me." In a 2018 interview with Vulture, producer Quincy Jones declared Brando would gladly have sex with just about anyone: "He'd f**k a mailbox. James Baldwin. Richard Pryor. Marvin Gaye."

Montgomery Clift was a talented actor, nominated for four Academy Awards, although he battled with his rise to fame and the media attention that went along with it. Clift struggled with substance abuse, and he died from a heart attack at the age of 45 in his bathtub. Clift was a private person and never publically spoke about his personal life or sexuality.

However, his close friend, Elizabeth Taylor, admitted that he was gay at the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation awards function in 2000. The 2018 documentary Making Montgomery Clift, which his nephew Robert Clift and his wife Hillary Demmons produced, revealed that his mother knew about his sexuality from an early age, possibly as young as 12 years. In a 1978 biography, a quote from Clift was released: "I love men in bed, but I really love women."

Patsy Kelly, the actress that portrays the audacious best friend in the 1930's comedies Merrily We Live and The Girl From Missouri, had a relatively short career on the big screen spanning the '30s and '40s. She openly embraced her sexuality, referring to herself as a "dyke" and revealing that she lived with her girlfriend and didn't plan on ever getting married.

Kelly had a relationship with Tallulah Bankhead, who was also very open about her sexuality. Bankhead was bi-sexual and had public relationships with men and women. We wonder if Kelly's openness about being a lesbian had any ill effects on her career or if there were just better actresses out there, as she never secured any leading roles during her career.

José Ramón Gil Samaniego moved from Mexico to Los Angeles in 1913, debuting in 1917 as an actor under the stage name Ramon Novarro. MGM promoted Navarro as a "Latin Lover," and he was second in popularity only to Rudolph Valentino. After Valentino died in 1926, Navarro became increasingly popular.

The studio had pushed Navarro to marry to maintain his image, but he refused, and they did not renew his contract after it ended in 1935. Navarro battled to find work and his career dissolved. Navarro never publically came out during his life and reportedly struggled with being gay due to his Catholic upbringing and relied on male prostitutes to relieve his sexual urges. In 1968 he was murdered by brothers Paul and Tony Ferguson, who entered his home in the guise of being escorts. They tortured and murdered him, hoping to find hidden money.

Raymond Burr is famed for playing the role of a defense attorney in the TV Series Perry Mason. He was also popular in the NBC drama Ironside, where he played a disabled detective. Burr was briefly married to Isabella Ward in 1948 but had a long-term relationship with Robert Benevides, who he met on the set of Perry Mason in 1960.

Scotty Bowers, who Benevides describes favorably in an interview with L.A. Weekly as "the most honest person I've known," reportedly introduced Burr and Benevides, who were known as business partners. They purchased a vineyard in Sonoma County, California. They were in a relationship for 33 years till Burr died in 1993.

Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor was an American stand-up comedian, actor, and writer. He struggled with substance abuse, and he even set himself alight while under the influence. Pryor had seven children born to five separate mothers. He also married seven times to five different women.

He died from a heart attack in 2005. In 2018, one of his ex-wives told TMZ that Pryor had had an affair with Marlon Brando in the '70s. Adding that, "It was the '70s....if you did enough cocaine, you'd fck a radiator and send it flowers in the morning." Quincy Jones also indicated that Pryor and Brando had been intimate in a Vulture* interview when he was discussing Marlon Brando's sexual escapades and said they included Richard Pryor.

Rock Hudson was the epitome of a leading man who worked hard to maintain his image. When Confidential threatened to expose his sexuality, his agent arranged for Hudson to marry his secretary, Phillis Gates, to stop the rumors. Gates began to suspect that Hudson was homosexual and hired a private investigator. They divorced after three years.

Hudson and stockbroker Lee Garlington were in a relationship between 1962 and 1965. They attended red carpet events together, although they both had dates because: "Nobody in their right mind came out," Garlington later told People magazine. "It was career suicide. We all pretended to be straight." Before he died in 1985, Hudon came out: “I am not happy that I am sick. I am not happy that I have AIDS. But if that is helping others, I can at least know that my own misfortune has had some positive worth.”

Although she was not a household name, Ruby Dandridge appeared in popular movies like A Hole in the Head, Tap Roots, Three Little Girls, Cabin in the Sky, and Tish. Dandridge also appeared as a dancer in King Kong, but the role was uncredited. She was a divorcee with two children when she moved to Los Angeles in 1929 with her "lifelong companion," Geneva Williams.

Williams helped to raise her two children. Dorothy Dandridge, a more successful actress than her mother Ruby Dandridge, later spoke out about her time living with Geneva. She claimed that Williams was abusive towards her. Dandridge continued her career as an actress well into the '60s, appearing mainly on television but, she received a lot of flack from black activists for the types of roles she portrayed.

Sal Mineo is best known for his role of Plato, a presumably gay teenager in Rebel Without a Cause. He was the fifth youngest actor to receive an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal in the film. Mineo was one of the few celebrities open about their sexuality in the '50s and '60s and publically admitted he was bisexual.

Mineo started a long-term relationship with Courtney Burr in 1970. They had been together for six years before Mineo's murder in 1976. Lionel Ray Williams was arrested and sentenced to 57 years in prison for fatally stabbing Mineo in the heart and ten robberies. Williams was a pizza delivery boy with a long record of robberies. He claimed that the stabbing was indiscriminate, and he had no idea who Mineo was.

Spencer Tracy is one of the most memorable actors of the 20th century. He received nine Academy Award nominations, winning two. He also won two British Academy Film Awards and a Golden Globe Award. Tracy and his wife, Louise, were estranged, but they never divorced due to his Catholic religion. The couple had two children together.

Tracy, who was bi-sexual, successfully hid his sexual preferences for many years until Vanity Fair covered the release of Kate: The Woman Who Was Hepburn, written by William J. Mann in 2016. In the book Hollywood pimp, Scotty Bowers claimed that he "serviced" Tracy numerous times. In 2018, a reporter from IndieWire allegedly asked Bowers, "So how gay was Spencer Tracy?" he replied, "He got drunk and thanked the man beside him in the morning for taking care of him."

Tab Hunter was famous for his good looks more than his acting skills. The girls loved him, as he presented the perfect image of an all-American boy next door or the army hero. As the vast majority of his fan base, it was vital to keep female viewers happy. Throughout his career, Hunter lived a double life. He pretended to be straight while faking relationships with his good friends, Natalie Wood and Debbie Reynolds.

In 2005, Hunter wrote a New York Times bestseller, Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star. This autobiography revealed the difficulties he faced being gay and pretending to be straight. He described feeling “painfully isolated, stranded between the casual homophobia of most ‘normal’ people and the flagrantly gay Hollywood subculture – where [he] was even less comfortable and less accepted.” Hunter eventually married his long-time partner, film producer Allan Glaser.

Tallulah Bankhead was a strong-willed, outspoken, and unconventional actress who did not conform to perceived norms. When meeting people at social functions, she would often introduce herself by saying, "I'm a lesbian. What do you do?" Although she had relationships with men too.

Bankhead was reportedly intimate with several A-list actresses, namely Eva Le Gallienne, Greta Garbo, Mercedes de Acosta, Hope Williams, Barbara Stanwyck, and Patsy Kelly. She also apparently joked, "I want to try everything once" and "conventional sex gives me claustrophobia." When Boze Hadleigh was researching his 1994 book titled Hollywood Lesbians, Patsy Kelly volunteered information from when she and Tallulah Bankhead were involved. "It was on and off and mostly it depended on Tallulah's mood," she said. "When she'd get caught up with a man, she'd go quite hetero on us."

Tyrone Power was tall, dark, and handsome, and he typically starred in swashbuckler roles. Some of the popular films he appeared in were Marie Antoinette, The Mark of Zorro, The Black Swan, Blood and Sand, Witness for the Prosecution, Prince of Foxes, The Black Rose, Captain from Castile and, Nightmare Alley. He was married twice to French actress Annabella and Mexican actress Linda Christian.

Hollywood's resident pimp, Scotty Bowers has much to say about most of the actors and actresses in the Golden Era, and this is what he had to say about Tyrone Power. "Women swooned over him, and he bedded quite a few of them, but he much preferred men," He also claimed that he and "Ty" would "get up to quite a few sexual shenanigans together." Cesar Romero confirmed that the twice-married actor was "bisexual."

Vincent Price was best known for his roles in horror films but did not limit his appearances to just one genre. Price appeared in more than 100 movies and has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame: one for films and the other for television. Price married three times: to actress Edith Barrett in 1938, Mary Grant in 1949, and Australian actress Coral Browne in 1974. Browne and Price remained married until she died in 1991.

He had two children, Vincent Barrett Price and his daughter Victoria Price. When Victoria Price came out as a lesbian, Price was supportive of his daughter. He even confided in her that he had had intimate relationships with men. Scotty Bowers claimed he also had sex with Price. "I tricked Vinny for years. Sex with him was pleasant, unhurried, gentle ... High-class stuff all the way."