At a time when they desperately need it, the gay movement may be getting a most precious addition: Adam Lambert. The edgy rocker from “American Idol” who in the past has been coy about his sexuality, is reportedly coming out to Rolling Stone magazine in next month’s cover story. NOT that this is at all shocking, after photos of Lambert dressed in drag and kissing men went viral on the Internet. Though it does raise questions as to why he wasn’t more direct in the first place when even an “ambiguous” sexuality worked against him.
“I am who I am,” Lambert said in response to the photos that leaked last March. “I have nothing to hide.” Not exactly a confirmation—or a denial.
As recently as last week, he told reporters to “keep speculating” about his mysterious sexuality, and then this morning, the NY Post reported that a “well placed source” inside Rolling Stone has said, “He didn’t want it to be an issue during the contest, but he’s fine with his sexuality.”
It’s a bit ironic that Lambert didn’t want his sexuality to be an issue when it clearly was. The outcome of American Idol, in which an innocuous and bland talent won the contest, is proof that America didn’t need Lambert to “come out” in order not to vote for him. His “edginess” was code enough for a values clash with conservatives. And although the additional minority stripe of his being Jewish may not have helped him in the way Kris Allen’s Christianity did, it’s unlikely that enough people even knew he was Jewish for that to have had an impact.
I don’t think anyone would suggest that Lambert lost because he had less talent.
Read more about Adam Lambert’s gay ‘liberation’ in Rolling Stone
What two other Hollywood Jews have to say about being Jewish and gay:
Howard Bragman, Hollywood publicist: “As I tell people I grew up fat, Jewish and gay in Flint, Michigan. It made me a very empathetic guy.”
Bruce Vilanch, comedy writer: “I grew up gay and Jewish. I had a grounding in guilt rich with lore.”
