Dave Loves Herb Alpert!

Trumpeter Herb Alpert was my
earliest gay celebrity crush.

My dad had all of his records, so it was bound to be either Herb or one of the guys from Peter, Paul & Mary. But somehow, Peter and Paul never quite did it for me. It might have been the facial hair. I was very picky even back then.

Herb Alpert was hot, and not just because he invoked visions of matadors and "The Dating Game."



Herb was so hot, that he inspired me to take up the trumpet in grade school. We had a very musical school system back then, and every student was expected to play something. Not necessarily the musical instrument played by their first celebrity crush, but something.

I ended up playing the trumpet in a talent contest, in a solo performance where I infamously flubbed the last few notes of "If I Were a Rich Man" (which I'd gotten out of the Herb Alpert songbook). I tried a couple of times more before giving up and walking off the stage humiliated, with the intention of killing myself right then and there at the tender age of 12.

Anyway, what killed my career as a star trumpeter was braces. I tried, but man, all that metal did not mix with trumpeting. Ow. I still sometimes think about taking it up once again. Now that the braces are off.

Dave - San Francisco, CA
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Inspired by the "Born This Way Blog" - BornThisWayBlog.com

Scot Loves Buddy Blue!

My first gay crush was Buddy Blue, a character
on the animated TV show "Rainbow Brite."

I was about 4-years-old when the show premiered in 1984.

And I was enamored by the cute, athletic guy, who was dressed from head to toe in MY favorite color - BLUE! I mean, what's NOT to love?

To this day, I am still baffled that my parents were actually so surprised that I was gay.

I had all of the "Rainbow Brite" toys and even (great gay gasp) "Rainbow Brite" curtains!



I'm also baffled why Buddy Blue never had the courage to ask Red Butler to ride the rainbow with him...

Scot - Columbus, OH
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Inspired by the "Born This Way Blog" - BornThisWayBlog.com

Craig Loves Les McKeown!

My first gay crush was on Les McKeown,
singer for The Bay City Rollers.

I was a young teen when the Bay City Rollers became the first real "boy band" in 1976.

And their sexy lead singer Les McKeown touched something inside of me that I couldn't comprehend at the time.

Seeing his open shirt with that broad smile was mesmerizing to me.



Looking back, my attraction to him was probably the first sign I was somehow "different" from other boys.

Craig - Indianapolis
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"Bay City Rollers: The Definitive Collection
Inspired by the "Born This Way Blog" - BornThisWayBlog.com

J. Pierre Loves He-Man!

My first gay crush was He-Man!

It all began with He-Man (defender of the Universe) in about 1988, when I was around age 5.

Odd to think about now, as I have never dated a blonde guy.

But there was something about his boots and furry underwear that screamed out to me:

"Hey, this is HOT!"

My dad bought me most of the He-Man action figures, even though I suspect he suspected it was more than just child's play.

I mean, let's face it: He-Man was not the only one with the bulging muscles. Even the bad guys were ripped!

I included She-Ra in the mix, because as time went on, I wanted to be her and be with him - LOL!

J. Pierre - Cape Town, South Africa
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Inspired by the "Born This Way Blog" - BornThisWayBlog.com

Julia Loves Christina Ricci!

My first gay crush was actress Cristina Ricci.

I went to see the movie "Now and Then" and lost my mind over the badass character she played.

In the movie, Christina couldn't identify with her girly pals. 

She even taped her boobs down for the first half of the film.

My crush got so deep that I had to feign a massive crush on Devon Sawa, to balance out my obsession.

I think my mom even got uncomfortable and pissed at me, for talking about her so much. I remember getting a bunch of teen magazines and I made a collage of Devon Sawa to put in the inside of my trunk at summer camp.

I would go to great lengths to ensure people that I actually had crushes on boys. I remember opening up the trunk at camp, and feeling embarrassed about the collage. Luckily, my shampoo bottle exploded and got everything stained, so I ended up crumpling it up and throwing it right away.



I listened to the "Now and Then" soundtrack until the cassette tape broke. My friends and I would pretend we were the characters in the movie, and of course I was always cast as the "tomboy" - aka the Cristina Ricci.

She was my hero!

Julia - Miami, FL
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