Hillary Loves Melissa Joan Hart!

My first gay crush was Melissa Joan Hart. Or actually her character Clarissa, from the excellent Nickelodeon show, "Clarissa Explains It All."

It was the mid 90's, and I was about 12-years old. At the time, I just thought I wanted to be her.

Melissa was so beautiful, and always dressed so cool! And she was just so awesome and rebellious.

She had a pet alligator named Elvis, for crying out loud! How was I supposed to resist her charms?

As I got older and realized more about myself, I knew I didn't just want to be Clarissa, I wanted to be WITH her! It was quite a moment of self discovery to admit that yes - my devotion to Ms. Hart's little TV show was mostly because I wanted her to be my girlfriend.


It was no secret I was her fan, but I don't think anyone suspected the underlying crush. My mom indulged my fascination though, and allowed me to sport many now-ridiculous Clarissa-inspired outfits and hairdos.

Thanks, mom!

Hillary - Washington, DC
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Inspired by the "Born This Way Blog" - BornThisWayBlog.com

Matthew Loves Dan Haggerty!

My first gay crush was Dan Haggerty!

It was the late 70's in Madison, Wisconsin and I was 7-years old. On the weekend, I would patiently endure an hour of "The Lawrence Welk Show" in order to not miss a moment of "The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams," which came on afterwards.

I was totally infatuated with this big bear of a man, with the soft spoken voice and the big furry beard.

I loved his pet bear named Ben. He was a friend to all animals. I'm 40-years old now, and I still have a "thing" for men with full bushy beards.

Matthew - Portland, OR
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Inspired by the "Born This Way Blog" - BornThisWayBlog.com

Robert Loves Race Bannon!

My first gay crush was Race Bannon!

Back as a 7-year old Midwesterner, I'd had passing crushes on male classmates and a few female cousins' boyfriends.

But at 9, I fell hard for Race Bannon, Jonny Quest's bodyguard.

He was tall, handsome like Rock Hudson, and prematurely grey or platinum blond. 

He had an advanced fashion sense, was a pilot, loved Jonny and pal Hadji, and kicked exotic bad-guy butt every week without sweating.

My dad was uncomfortable with my obvious affection for Race, and my little brother told everyone I loved him. Which was fodder for neighborhood bullies who already couldn't resist hassling me (even though we had the only real pool in the neighborhood at our house).

The show only lasted 2 years, just long enough to have my first real-life experience at age 11.


I dated a few Race Bannons over the years (letdowns), and when living in India, a few Hadjis too. Today I'm in my mid-50's and married to the best guy on Earth.

But Race (we remain on a first name basis) will always be my first "famous gay" crush.

Robert - Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
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Click here: "Born This Way: Real Stories of Growing Up Gay" book
Inspired by the "Born This Way Blog" - BornThisWayBlog.com

Justin Loves Leonardo DiCaprio!

My first gay crush was on Jack Dawson
(aka actor Leonardo DiCaprio).

I first saw "Titanic" when I was 6, in the mid 90's with my sister and aunt.

The movie was captivating for me. And even though I was so young, I still understood the gravity of Jack and Rose's love for each other. Also, I was wickedly jealous of Rose.

At first I wasn't sexually attracted to him (I was 6 for God's sake), but when I saw Jack frozen in the water with Rose trying to wake him up, I started bawling my eyes out.

I thought it was a real story, and I was watching an actor die filming it. My aunt tried to console me by telling me it was just a movie, but it didn't help me sleep at night.

I remember having dreams of me falling through the water and flying through the sunken Titanic. I would meet Jack by the clock, and we would embrace and kiss while everyone around us applauded.

I still have a crush on Leo today. But the Jack Dawson that stole my 6-year old heart has to rest in peace. That is, until I have the occasional dream taking me on another journey down to that amazing ship.

Justin - Steilacoom, WA
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Inspired by the "Born This Way Blog" - BornThisWayBlog.com

Steven Loves Brian Kelly!

My two gay crushes were on TV shows in the 1960's.

My first real gay crush when I was around 11, was actor Brian Kelly. 

He played the dad on "Flipper."

He was always shiny and sweaty, or in his swim trunks and scuba gear. 

His character as a strong, strict, loving father was my ultimate fantasy.

And the other was actor Vince Edwards, who played "Dr. Ben Casey." 

I was fascinated by all the dark hair on his forearms, and sometimes getting to see his chest hairs peeking out of the top of his shirt.

To this day, I am still attracted to dark Irish or Italian looking men.

Even as I look at these pictures now, they are mighty fine!

Steven - NYC, NY
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Inspired by the "Born This Way Blog" - BornThisWayBlog.com