Something I was just wondering:
Are there any Oscar winners (Actor, sup actor, dir, etc...) who were out when they won?
Are there any out gay Oscar winners?

I'll have to research that.

(And this is not saying winning an Oscar is the be all end all of success, I just picked a high profile title: Academy Award Winner.)

I find that absurd. What a total disincentive for anyone to become successful. "If you are successful, you are under obligation to parade your dating and sexual life for the world to comment on."

No thanks.

First of all, the "High Society" spread I'm thinking of came out around 1981. Kind of a poolside thing. I think John Hinckley may have had a copy of it, but I could be wrong about that.

Second, I think she worked as hard as the average actress to appear elegant and glamorous. Either she was trying to counter a dyke-image or she was showing that lesbians can be elegant, too. Of course, the latter only works if we knew she was a lesbian. Which, I guess, we did.

As far as keeping silent goes, there is the "I don't care what you do, but why do I have to hear about it" element out there that occupies a middle ground between hate and tolerance. So, there is something to be said for the idea that one can act as a role model by leading a quiet private life. Ideally, this would encompass frank acknowledgments of one's unremarkable life when asked, but who's to say.

If I become successful, I promise I'll reveal all.

And, trust me, the world's gonna need therapy after that. ;)

Personally, I would rather that public figures keep their private life private, even if it means that we lose out on some wonderful potential role models. For every Foster, there is also a Travolta or Cruise who is adamant about sharing how special their private life is. I'm sure they are a role model to plenty of people as well, and one of which, I don't think we need more. I like these people based on how well they act. Otherwise, it just isn't any of my business.

It's part and parcel for what comes with that kind of celebrity status. Not everyone wants to be watched but people who are successful and high profile especially in the entertainment industry are. It stinks, but that's how it is.

If I relied on the media to promote my career and to help me make money, I also have to realize that there's a downside. Celebs open their lives in magazines, tv interviews, etc to promote themselves and their film, music, etc. When that door is opened, it's open.

There's a lot of crud that comes along with celebrity. That's the way it goes.

(And I am not picking on CJ - just using his post as a launching point)

As BTD mentioned above, I look forward to the day when this is a non-issue. I am a believer that if I want change in the world, that change has to being with me. I am just living my life as I choose to. My choice is that a person's sexuality has no bearing on other parts of their life.

I strive for the same on other aspects (color, religion, etc.). I wish I was there, but one thing at a time (after all, Everyone's a Little Bit Racist).

What about the possibility that she was dressing to look elegant as a woman? Nothing more, nothing less.

I don't dress to look good as a straight man* - I dress to look good as a man**. I may not always succeed, but making a statement about what my sexuality is does not have any impact on my choice.

* Arguments about my sexuality aside
** Halloween excepted

Ditto. (Which is why, for instance, I don't buy gossip magazines, I don't watch TMZ or ET or any of the other tripe, and I don't drive traffic to Perez Hilton's website.) (I do admit that I watch The Soup, but that's an entirely different monster.)

And also, ditto to the idea that Foster may well have been dressing to be glamorous as a woman. The title "lesbian" does not necessarily imply that one must be frumpy or not frumpy. I've known frumpy lesbians and glamorous ones, and frumpy and glamorous breeders, too.

I didn't realize "celebrity" was a fundamental natural force.

Sorry, but that's a bunch of crap that's been sold to America by the tabloids. I have no interest in knowing more about a celebrity than they care to share, and I barely even want to know that much.