I've got an Org exclusive. Apparently no one else has been on CNN.com this morning so I'm breaking a story here. George Takei,Sulu on Star Trek, has declared his homosexuality in the latest issue of Frontiers magazine. From CNN.com:


LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- George Takei, who as helmsman Sulu steered the Starship Enterprise through three television seasons and six movies, has come out as a homosexual in the current issue of Frontiers, a biweekly Los Angeles magazine covering the gay and lesbian community.

Takei told The Associated Press on Thursday that his new onstage role as psychologist Martin Dysart in "Equus," helped inspire him to publicly discuss his sexuality.

Takei described the character as a "very contained but turbulently frustrated man." The play opened Wednesday at the David Henry Hwang Theater in Los Angeles, the same day that Frontiers magazine featured a story on Takei's coming out.

The current social and political climate also motivated Takei's disclosure, he said.

"The world has changed from when I was a young teen feeling ashamed for being gay," he said. "The issue of gay marriage is now a political issue. That would have been unthinkable when I was young."

The 68-year-old actor said he and his partner, Brad Altman, have been together for 18 years.

Takei, a Japanese-American who lived in a U.S. internment camp from age 4 to 8, said he grew up feeling ashamed of his ethnicity and sexuality. He likened prejudice against gays to racial segregation.

"It's against basic decency and what American values stand for," he said.

Takei joined the "Star Trek" cast in 1966 as Hikaru Sulu, a character he played for three seasons on television and in six subsequent films. He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1986.

A community activist, Takei ran for the Los Angeles City Council in 1973. He serves on the advisory committee of the California Civil Liberties Public Education Program and is chairman of East West Players, the theater company producing "Equus."


Props to Sulu

I'm still waiting on Denzel Washington to come out.

Imago777 said:

i'm still waiting for YOU to come out - that would be two gay asian trekkies in a row!

Anxiety said:

Can I send you pictures of my bum?

why do some people feel the need to give an interview to "come out"? i mean, a 68-year old has-been actor from a tv show that aired for 3 seasons like 40 years ago...wow...nobody even dresses up like him at those geek conventions
bravo for accepting who you are, but unless you're ricky martin or tom cruise, who gives a fuck? (and even then, who gives a fuck?)

p.s....the next time somebody says gay and lesbian intolerance is in the same hemisphere as racial segregation, somebody's gonna get punched

Imago777 said:

you're still dating hobos???

meltwithu said:

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Imago777 said:

you ever see that commercial where the guy gets fired over the phone and then catches a flight and body slams his boss at the meeting?...well you just keep it up (places fist to eye)

Anxiety said:

applekisses said:

meltwithu said:

i think it's a generational thing, really. kids coming up now don't see being gay as such a big deal, whereas when we hear about a baby boomer or even a gen-x public figure coming out, it's still resonant because we've seen them a certain way for years, and now we have that perception + "by the way, i'm gay". it's a good thing, but i'm hoping in another generation or two, it'll become unnecessary. for now, gay folks are still starving for more role models and positive examples.

i'm not even gonna TOUCH that p.s.

Imago777 said:

You're still HAWT.

Imago777 said:

I'm sorry. I just had to post this again...

Anxiety said:

who DIDN"T think he was gay? next we'll have richard simmons make some declaration of the pain of hiding he likes men. it's like when ellen degenerate came out...was there one person in america who didn't know?

BinaryJustin said:

i thought uhura's moustache was thicker than that

meltwithu said:

I did not know...and I am the world's foremost heterosexual authority on who is gay and who is not in Hollywood. But I guess I never really thought about Sulu one way or the other.

meltwithu said:

i think you're missing the point. it's not about "passing" or "flaming" or "straight acting" or any of that. it's about being able to identify yourself publicly in an industry that STRONGLY recommends that you keep your sexuality to yourself if you want to remain a viable product for mainstream america.

richard simmons, scary raging flamer that he is, has never publicly come out as gay. believe it or not, he has an entire fan base of housewives and crazy cat ladies who think he's dreamy and quite the ladies man. and guess what? richard simmons makes money off that. he wouldn't if he came out and said, "guess what? i don't like girls. you ladies don't have a chance." of course, deep down, i'm sure his fans know this, but it's easy to deny in the meantime, isn't it?

meanwhile, ellen took that risk. for a while, it wasn't pretty. there was a backlash, and she didn't exactly orchestrate her coming out party with the most sterling of grace. but look at her now - she's come out the other side with her dignity in tact, and she's successful again. people don't give a shit that she's a lezbeeshan, and she doesn't wear it on her sleeve anymore...though she doesn't have anything to hide now. that's the point.

this is one of the many reasons john waters is a hero of mine - he never had to make some big "coming out" statement, because he came from the underground where it was hip to be queer, so when he went mainstream, people either either assumed he was gay or they really didn't want to think about it. it's like he just eased into being an out gay celebrity without the fanfare, and he's been accepted and celebrated for what he is.

GottaLetitgo said:

exactly.

i'm glad he's out! GOOD for you mr. takei. don't let the bigots get you down!

meltwithu said:

makin' money, shit.

going where no man has gone before.....

I always thought DeForest Kelley was gay.

He called the capt Jim and the capt called him bones....


think about it.

I think Jake Sisko is gay to.

Anyone who's heard George Takei give interviews and take phony phone calls on the Howard Stern Show would not surprised by this.
I love George. The way he proudly enunciates everything word is as much adorable and endearing as it is embarassing. The guy is hilarious. I could listen to him for hours.

Anxiety said:

Seriously???



I've always thought it was more of a fag-hag situation. Women love the gay male friend with the shoulder to cry on...

Anxiety said:

Is there anyone out there other than his followers, gay or straight, that actually likes this guy? I always thought he was universally loathed all the way across the sexual orientation spectrum...if for no other reason than that it appears he hasn't changed his clothes in 20 years.

I love Richard Simmons, the man should have his own talk show

Heiress said:

one day i would love to write a book called "the zeta dogs" about all the obscure, outrageous, unbelievable subcultures and fan communities out there. stuff like slash fiction writers and plushies and QVC addicts and the like...people who take "famming out" to a whole other level...it's something that fascinates me, not in a way that makes me want to laugh at them or belittle them, but more just because other people's obsessions can be really fascinating to me...not to mention it can sometimes hold a mirror to the wackier behavior of some of us so-called "normal" folks.

BinaryJustin said:

that's just sessy.

and yeah...mr. sulu's gay!

meltwithu said:

i honestly didn't know till he came out.