This Book is Gay (24 page)

That said, I don't want you to be too comfortable. The hardest chapter in this book to write was the one about the political situations around the world – most countries are changing for the better, but some regimes are changing for the worse. YOU will have to fight that because, love him, Peter Tatchell won't be around forever. Yeah, YOU. YOU need to help. Back of this book: Stonewall, Amnesty, Kaleidoscope, Terrence Higgins Trust. Help 'em out. With each generation, things are getting better for LGBT* people – what will YOU do to make sure this continues to happen?

I like to think that, before long, you'll introduce yourself as ‘a dancer', ‘a fan', ‘a friend', ‘a writer' or ‘a personal trainer' before, ‘I'm Bob and I'm gay.' Straight people never have to do this, and neither should we.

Be proud. You have lots of different hats. Wear them all with pride. This is such an exciting time to be LGBT* – things are constantly changing and evolving and I, for one, can't wait to see what happens next.

As an individual, you will have a wide and varied taste in all things musical, artistic, political and dramatic. However, there are a number of people (as well as films and TV programmes) who transcend normal celebrity to become something far more special – they become GAY ICONS – and that includes icons for gay women and trans people too.

As these icons are not necessarily LGBT* themselves, it's hard to say what makes LGBT* people take each one to our hearts. Is it the aesthetic? Is it the glamour? Is it the personal tragedy or overcoming the odds? Is it the kind hearts or open-mindedness to our cause?

Of course, part of the fun is making your own icons. Sometimes we look to our mums and dads for inspiration, and sometimes it's a best friend. You can't help but be inspired – who inspires you?

That said, there are a few inspirations we nearly all agree on, and they have become associated or embedded in gay culture, so you should really get up to speed, if only to form an opinion either way.

Ladies and gents, here's a brief dictionary of gay icons, along with some of their champions from Twitter.

ABBA
– Swedish pop marriage made in Eurovision, itself a mothership of camp.
@mytentoryours – ABBA. Don't ask why, just sance (that's a mixture of singing and dancing).

Buck Angel
– FTM multitattooed porn star, film-maker and activist.

Beautiful Thing
– 1996 movie written by playwright and screenwriter
Jonathan Harvey.
The film features an incredibly sweet love story between two young men on a London council estate.

Beyoncé
– Look, if you are known worldwide by your first name alone, you automatically qualify.

Chas Bono
– Not only did he come out of Cher's vagina, but he is probably the most high-profile FTM transsexual on the planet.

David Bowie
– The most high-profile bisexual on the list and probably responsible for bringing genderqueer and androgyny firmly into the limelight. A true icon.

Brokeback Mountain
– heartbreaking Oscar winner about gay shepherds.

Bert and Ernie
– The
Sesame Street
couple finally ‘came out' on the cover of the
New Yorker
when a key part of the United States' Defense of Marriage Act was struck down by that country's Supreme Court in 2013.

Cher
– Oh, God, she's just CHER. CHER.

Chris Colfer / Darren Criss
– Their portrayal of cute
Glee
high schoolers brought gay to mainstream American youth.

@charlieinabook – Chris Colfer: 23, author, actor, screenwriter, unfailingly kind.

Joan Crawford
– If her turn in
Whatever Happened to Baby Jane
doesn't do it for you, her depiction in
Mommy Dearest
will. TINA! BRING ME THE AXE.

Quentin Crisp
– Writer and raconteur who rose to fame with his book
The Naked Civil Servant
. The godfather of fabulous.

Tom Daley
– The Olympian announced he was in a relationship with
Milk
scriptwriter Dustin Lance Black in 2013. Fantastically, Daley refused to label his sexuality. How modern.

Bette Davis
– The other half of the
Baby Jane
double act and referenced in Madonna's ‘Vogue' rap

James Dean
– The troubled actor is regarded as having formed the quintessential lesbian ‘look'.

Ellen DeGeneres
– Easily the most famous lesbian in the world, Ellen came out on live TV and is now in a high-profile marriage to
Arrested Development
actress Portia de Rossi.

Marlene Dietrich
– Bisexual goddess of the silver screen, known for her killer line in male drag.

Beth Ditto
– Openly gay, outspoken singer of Gossip and fashion icon.
@charlieinabook Beth Ditto: unapologetic, inspiring, great singer & open.

Divine
– Riotous drag queen, died way too young. Star of outrageous films like
Pink Flamingos
,
Hairspray
and
Female Trouble
.

Doctor Who
– Gay men love the concept of a guy who never gets old, never settles down and is always accompanied by glamorous young women. Can't think why. Also features Captain Jack Harkness, a bi icon in his own right.

Jodie Foster
– A lesbian icon long before she came out officially in a very odd awards speech in 2013.

Stephen Fry
– Much loved for his activism, wit and honesty about mental health.
@_Buachaill_Dana – Stephen Fry, brilliantly clever, doesn't play on stereotypes & solely responsible for bringing Grindr to the public eye in the UK.

Judy Garland
– Considered by many to be the ultimate gay icon, Garland ticks all the boxes: beauty, the voice, the camp credentials (
The Wizard of Oz
) and a tragic downfall.

Kathleen Hanna
– Leader of the Riot Grrrl movement and member of queer-friendly bands Bikini Kill and Le Tigre

Dana International
– Another Eurovision alum, Dana was (and arguably is) the most famous MTF transsexual in the media.

Elton John
– The flamboyant singer and pianist is now known more for his activism and dedication to his HIV/AIDS foundation.

Grace Jones
– Camp, eccentric, high-fashion. A living art installation and foreshadower of Gaga.

Billie Jean King
– The first professional sportswoman to come out as openly gay, in 1981.

The L Word
– Groundbreaking and explicit drama about a group of gay women living in Los Angeles.

Lady Gaga
– Although doing nothing David Bowie, Grace Jones and Madonna hadn't done decades earlier in terms of music and style, Lady Gaga was the first major (and also bi) pop star to throw herself into gay activism.

k d lang
– Gay singer and lesbian icon

Annie Lennox
– As well as her past as a gender-bending pop androgyne, Lennox is also a staunch supporter of HIV/AIDS charities.
@adamswainston – Annie Lennox by far. A role model for so many reasons.

Macklemore
– The rapper (WHO IS ALSO VERY SEXY) called out the hip-hop world for its homophobia on the 2013 track ‘Same Love'.

Madonna
– Madonna has become something of a symbol of female strength: doing what she wants, saying what she wants, wearing what she wants. Gay men seem to like this a lot.
@MrSeras – MAWDOOOONA! I don't think there is anyone who has done more to encourage expression of the full spectrum of sexuality no matter what it is.

Ricky Martin
– We all assumed he was gay anyway, but since he came out, the Latin pop sensation is the new poster gay for same-sex parenthood.

Armistead Maupin
– Author of the bestselling and much loved
Tales of the City
saga, chronicling a diverse group of people in San Francisco.

Ian McKellen
– Hollywood's most dignified gay actor, reaching millions in his roles as Gandalf and Magneto. McKellen is also a keen activist for gay rights.

Mean Girls
– Dialogue from this film makes up eighty-seven per cent of any conversation between gay men.

Bette Midler
– Gay-friendly diva who started her career playing in a gay sauna.

Harvey Milk
– Openly gay city supervisor of San Francisco who fought for equality and the protection of gay people in their jobs. Assassinated in his prime. A true hero.
@BioLabMan – Harvey Milk. I could go on at length as to what that man did!

Liza Minnelli
– Not only does she possess Judy Garland's genes, but she earns her spot through her tumultuous private life and Oscar-winning role in
Cabaret
.

The Minogue sisters
– Everyone loves a bit of sibling rivalry. Do you like the perky blond one or the sultry brunette? FIGHT. Kylie was taken to the gays' hearts because of her transformation from bubble-permed soap mechanic to hot-panted pop phenomenon.

Martina Navratilova
– Openly gay sportsperson and the most successful tennis player of all time.

Rosie O'Donnell
– Outspoken lesbian television personality

Frank Ocean
– The soul singer came out in 2012, a huge step for a young black guy with connections to the stereotypically homophobic world of hip-hop.

Oprah Winfrey
– Outspoken
NOT LESBIAN
television personality.

Paris is Burning
– 1990 documentary about the ballroom drag scene in NYC, giving the community a whole new vocabulary. “Category IS, cultural realness!”

Dorothy Parker
– American writer and satirist known for her cutting wit and killer put downs – an inspiration to all.

Dolly Parton
– A countrified version of Cher. A survivor who rose out of nothing to become a one-woman empire.

Andrej Pejic
– Australian fashion model, born male but referred to as ‘she' by her fashion-designer boyfriend. Stunning.

Pierre et Gilles
– French artists and gay couple known for their flamboyant, hyperreal photo paintings