Gay closeted celebrities

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She told her hundreds of thousands of social media followers that she was "living [her] PERSONAL life the way [she's] happiest" with a photo of her and Livingston.

Portia De Rossi

Portia de Rossi was not too keen on coming out as a lesbian to the public but when photos of her and her then-girlfriend Francesca Gregorini were leaked to the press, she had no choice but to come clean.

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Sal Mineo & James Dean

James Dean was never publicly out, but his bisexuality became known after he died tragically in a car crash in 1955 at age 24.

Sal Mineo – who was openly bisexual and costarred with Dean in the 1955 classic Rebel Without a Cause – mentioned it in a 1972 interview, saying: "Everyone's bi if they'd be honest about it."

He went on to say: "Half the gays in Hollywood pretend they're bi.

Latifah's s*xuality is often referred to as an "open secret" in the Hollywood community, as she is regularly spotted out being affectionate with reported girlfriends. Looking back, the actor has said that he now feels a "strength" in knowing that he is being true to himself.

But behind the dazzling smiles and carefully curated images, many actors and actresses lived a secret life – one they were forbidden to share.

At a time when there was no such thing as an LGBTQ community or gay pride, being gay was considered both scandalous and career-ending.

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Some performers openly declared their sexuality, but countless performers were forced to hide their true selves, often living in fear of exposure.

He had deep emotional trauma, once declaring to the draft board that he was homosexual to avoid service – but later was urged into conversion therapy.

Western star Gary Cooper took him under his wing after realizing Perkins' struggles.

Cooper's daughter, Maria Cooper Janis, says her father "respected everyone's life and right to make their own choices.

He had friends in Hollywood, in the acting community, who were gay, and they couldn't come out. The singer had a sense of humor about the whole incident, even mocking it in a music video for his song "Outside." Several years later, George Michael admitted to hiding his true s*xuality because he did not want to upset his mother or have her worry about AIDS.

Lance Bass

Lance Bass is mostly known for being in the popular boy band, N'SYNC, which had hits like "Bye Bye Bye" and "Tearin' Up My Heart." He is known today as being a proud gay advocate but unfortunately, he did not get to make the decision to come out himself.

But for those in the 1930s, '40s, '50s and beyond, authenticity came at too high a price.

While we now embrace diversity in the spotlight, it's bittersweet to look back and realize how many legends were denied the joy of living – and loving – out loud. Privately, he maintained a long romance with Anthony Perkins.

Studio contracts, morality clauses and ruthless gossip columnists ensured that any hint of same-sex attraction could result in a swift fall from grace.

EXCLUSIVE: Love in the Shadows – The Gay Golden Age of Hollywood Stars Who Lived in the Closet

Back in the glittering heyday of Hollywood's Golden Age, stars lit up the silver screen with charm, elegance and seemingly picture-perfect personal lives, RadarOnline.com can reveal. The paparazzi snapped photos of the pair holding hands and snuggling, which essentially outed Kristen.

Stewart later appeared on Saturday Night Live, where she referred to herself as “so gay.” She now describes herself as an “utterly proud” bis*exual and has found the whole experience with coming out to be “empowering.” She said that she thought that it was “cool” that she didn’t feel the need to “nail down” her s*xuality and that she was acknowledging that s*xual “fluidity” has always existed but now everyone is able to talk about it.

Tim Cook

Tim Cook, better known as the CEO of Apple, was outed by the CNBC news anchor, Simon Hobbs in 2014.

Cook had defended the LGBTQ+ community in the past, saying people needed to "embrace immigration reform and eliminate discrimination of the LGBT community." He later confirmed that he was a "proud" gay man in an opinion piece for Bloomberg Businessweek.

Raven-Symone

Raven-Symone tried to keep her s*xuality a secret for many years but the Disney Channel star was outed as a lesbian when the tabloids published a story about her moving in with her girlfriend, AzMarie Livingston. The two live together in Symone's luxury New York City apartment and reportedly does not "care what her family thinks" and that she is a "lesbian and wants to live that way."

The actress did not speak much about her private life and has said that "it's about the work" when asked about it in the past.

I might tell you some people I had affairs with – maybe. Some LGBTQ+ people live their lives loud and proud, while others choose to be more private about their s*xuality. Portia later ended up marrying the talk show host, Ellen DeGeneres in 2008 and are now recognized as one of Hollywood's gay power couples.

Zachary Quinto

Zachary Quinto has starred in big-name projects like American Horror Story and Star Trek but he did not want the world knowing that he was gay.

Queen Latifah has yet to confirm her s*xuality with the public. The couple met in 2008 while competing on The Amazing Race together.

Ricky Martin

Ricky Martin was speculated to have been gay long before he was outed. The pop star's ex-girlfriend decided to get revenge on him by saying that he "became gay" in an interview. The actress and talkshow host is fairly active in the LGBTQ+ community.

However, in 2013, Raven confirmed her homos*xuality with a tweet saying "I can finally get married!" after the government legalized same-s*x marriage. After the allegations got out of hand, Cooper came out in an email to the journalist, Andrew Sullivan writing, “The fact is, I’m gay, always have been, always will be, and I couldn’t be any more happy, comfortable with myself, and proud.”

Although the decision to confirm his homos*xuality was ultimately his, Anderson was somewhat forced by the media to discuss his private, romantic life when he had clearly tried to keep that information to himself in the past. He said that he did not think it was “anyone else’s business” but that he believed in “standing up and being counted.”

Queen Latifah

Queen Latifah is an actress and talkshow host who has not ever spoken much about her s*xuality.

I never asked him. However, New York magazine contributing editor Mark Harris did not seem to take Quinto's feelings into consideration when he tweeted something that essentially ended up outing the actor to the world.

Quinto never outed himself with any "big announcement" but he did refer to himself as a "gay man" a few times during his interview with New York magazine.