One can never be "Too old or Too Gay"!

by Barry Artiste | June 29, 2008 at 10:59 am | 397 views | 8 comments

Opinion

Barry Artiste, Now Public Contributor

Hey, welcome to the Club, none of us want to get old, but you know, if appearances are all that matters, Gays certainly don't have a monopoly on shallowness. They say from Pain comes Humour, and certainly Gays, and in particular Gay Entertainers have their share as they are out in the Public Eye fearing being outed. Freddie Mercury for one feared growing old as well as being outed.

One the other hand Monty Python's Graham Chapman, gave obvious clues and really didn't give a Diddlers Fart who knew he was Gay.

Actor, Comedienne and Talk Show Host Ellen Generes hid her Gayness, till outed and then said What the Hell, with Studio execs panicking over rating, which slowed at first and now are at the highest because she went out and said it like it is. Ellen was pretty much the first openly gay entertainer, leaving the closet open for others who did the same.... eventually.. As Ellen and other Gays and straights get older, so will everyone else, so it is not like Being Gay is an eternal fountain of youth, it is all in the mind, as you are as old as you feel, and as Graham Chapman (Never at a Loss for Swearing) would say if people were shocked to learn he was GAY, would say F**K Em!!!

One can never be too old or too gay

The mainstreaming of gay culture makes for a better future

Kelvin Browne, Weekend Post

Gays have long enjoyed good branding: cute, buff and young. But, shocking as this may seem, the reality is that even gays get old. Who'd have thought it would happen to those beautiful, almost-naked boys frolicking on floats during the Pride Parade? Ageing is a terrible word in the gay community, raising as it does the spectre of turning into an old queen. Imagine Quentin Crisp, not as entertainment but as the reflection in your mirror.

That said, old age today presents many advantages for gays and lesbians (and related gay brands) that didn't exist a generation ago. Evolving positive attitudes toward homosexuality, for instance, make life more comfortable, especially with the advent of retirement benefits and other entitlements that were previously withheld. Plus, the sheer number of gay Boomers within the gay population means that they will continue to shape attitudes, and do so more broadly than was possible in the past. These days, there's exercise and readily available cosmetic surgery, all of which can prevent the slide from macho to matronly.

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Rhonda J Mangus

at 11:25 on June 29th, 2008

good stuff:

Barry Artiste, a great article! Thanks for posting!

Barry Artiste

at 11:29 on June 29th, 2008

Thanks for visiting Rhonda and the compliment, you know the world has enough shit to deal with than to worry what someone's sexual preference, are they too thin, young, hip enough. If people worry about what others are like, then they have way too much time on their hands.

Rhonda J Mangus

at 11:37 on June 29th, 2008

Barry, Seriously:)! However, I must say, I do find 'the take' on the gay life-style interesting, even amusing at times! Thanks again for a great read!

Barry Artiste

at 11:40 on June 29th, 2008

Like most of us, it is not my Cuppa Tea, I have always preferred the fairer sex, but then as a Breeder of three kids, Gays may not agree with my lifestyle either. As for me getting old, well Shit Happens!

Rhonda J Mangus

at 11:45 on June 29th, 2008

Barry, it certainly does:)!

jordan

at 16:13 on June 29th, 2008

A brief word from Sir Ian McKellen:

McKellen says, "With all that liberal attitude (in Hollywood), you have a local industry which is saying to local people who live in the area--'When you come to work, you are not gay.'

"And I think to myself, 'Can people whose minds work like that make good films? And if at the heart of Hollywood there is that lie, how many other lies are there?'

"And it's the producers who have this problem--God knows what sort of people they are--who think that it's impossible for you and me to fancy the same person.

"Well, what dull lives they must have."

Barry Artiste

at 16:59 on June 29th, 2008

On the other Hand Actors GAY or Straight have an innate ability as actors to turn it off and turn it on, whatever role they play on film or in private.