6 May 2009 5:15 AM, PDT | WENN | See recent WENN news »
M*A*S*H star David Ogden Stiers has come out as gay - after years of fearing he would be denied roles because of his sexuality.
The actor first tasted fame as Major Charles Winchester on the hit TV comedy before finding steady work as a voice actor in several Disney projects, including Beauty And The Beast and Pocahontas.
But throughout his career, he was warned he risked losing work if he came out as a gay man.
He tells the Gossip Boy blog, "From the late 1980s until about seven or eight years ago, you would find certain individuals coming up to you, me, and advocating the position that since we were doing family fare that it would be best were the actors to maintain a certain palatability to parents.
"These parties likely had heard rumors or harbored suspicions about me and wanted to make sure no embarrassing incidents were forthcoming."
But he insists his reasons for coming out now, at the age of 66, have nothing to do with his profession - he wants to find a life partner.
Stiers adds: "I could claim noble reasons as coming out in order to move gay rights forward, but I must admit it is for far more selfish reasons. Now is the time I wish to find someone and I do not desire to force any potential partner to live a life of extreme discretion for me."
Similar News Items
Beauty and the Beast (1991)- FusedFilm’s Favorite 9 Animated Films of All Time! (From FusedFilm. 23 December 2009, 12:08 PM, PST)
- ‘The Princess and The Frog’: Soundtrack Review (From Atomic Popcorn. 22 December 2009, 5:04 PM, PST)
- The movies set for Oscar glory in 2010 (From The Guardian - Film News. 21 December 2009, 2:55 AM, PST)
Pocahontas (1995)
- Wicked Des Moines Tickets Go On Sale 6/20, Plays 9/23-10/18 (From BroadwayWorld.com. 18 October 2009, 1:30 AM, PDT)
- Wicked Des Moines Tickets Go On Sale 6/20, Plays 9/23-10/18 (From BroadwayWorld.com. 12 June 2009, 1:30 PM, PDT)
- 20 Years of Summer Movies, A Love/Hate Relationship (From JustPressPlay. 7 May 2009, 10:00 PM, PDT)
David Ogden Stiers
- New On DVD This Week (From The Flickcast. 3 November 2009, 3:35 PM, PST)
- 'M*A*S*H*' star Spiers comes out (From digitalspy. 6 May 2009, 8:38 PM, PDT)
- M*A*S*H Star "Out and Proud" (From E! Online. 6 May 2009, 3:20 PM, PDT)
