Richard Chamberlain, who turns 89 today, was closeted gay man at peak of his fame – but no more!

Hard to believe but Richard Chamberlain, the great star of The Thorn Birds, Shogun and Dr. Kildare, turns 89 today.

He was pretty much off my radar as a kid until I saw a scene in Thorn Birds where he was dancing (it was the same party where Barbara Stanwyck kissed him on the lips then died) and he was just so HOT!

From then on, I watched everything he ever did.

He came out as a gay man in 2003 and wrote about it in his memoir Shattered Love: “When I grew up, being gay, being a sissy or anything like that was verboten. I disliked myself intensely and feared this part of myself intensely and had to hide it and became “Perfect Richard, All-American Boy” as a place to hide.”

He continued to be busy in roles both straight and gay – including in recent years playing Felicity Huffman’s gay stepfather on Desperate Housewives and Uncle Saul’s love interest on Brothers & Sisters.

Later films include Forbidden Love, The Perfect Family and I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry.