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T.R. Knight "Definitely Happy" He's Openly Gay
T.R. Knight by Bob D'Amico/ABC
Although T.R. Knight seemed comfortable and confident when he publicly revealed that he was gay last October, the Grey's Anatomy star in fact didn't receive unanimous support for his brave decision. According to an interview in the June 19 issue of The Advocate, while his friends were supportive, others advised him against coming out so soon after the on-set kerfuffle involving Isaiah Washington, saying, "Don't do it. Don't do it now." But Knight was undeterred. "I could have retreated," he says, "but I'm definitely happy I made the decision." — Reporting by Raven Snook
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May 11, 2007 10:53 AM
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I applaud T.R. for having the courage to 'come out'. One of my circles of friends are mostly gay, and proud of it. It is not my lifestyle, but they are happy with their choices, and fun to be around. I don't know if their real personalities would have come out if they had not, but I commend them for doing so. I work at a university where most of them are faculty so perhaps they felt comfortable in this 'educated environment' where they are not being judged in the same way that television and movie stars can be. I'm just glad that they are my friends. Love ya, T.R.
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May 11, 2007 12:01 PM
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T.R. is da bomb.
I want to know who advised him not to come out. I certainly hope it wasn't the show's producers.
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May 11, 2007 12:21 PM
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I applaud T.R. for having the courage to 'come out'. One of my circles of friends are mostly gay, and proud of it. It is not my lifestyle, but they are happy with their choices, and fun to be around. I don't know if their real personalities would have come out if they had not, but I commend them for doing so. I work at a university where most of them are faculty so perhaps they felt comfortable in this 'educated environment' where they are not being judged in the same way that television and movie stars can be. I'm just glad that they are my friends. Love ya, T.R.
I applaud his decision. It was brave and the best way to confront the bigotry he experience. As a gay man who made the decision to come out, I am always glad when those in the public eye decide to live in honesty.
I did want to comment about one poster's observations (above). Though you seem to comfortable with the issue of homosexuality and supportive of your friends, there are many of us who would not be comfortable with your description of our life as a "lifestyle" and a "choice." That merely perpuates the false notion that our sexual orientation is nothing more than a way we live (Lifestyle) and a personal choice...which we could change if we so chose. That is just not the case. It is part of who we are!
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May 11, 2007 1:28 PM
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When are people going to understand being gay is not a CHOICE it is who you are PERIOD! Anyway good for you TR Knight stand up for who you are!!!
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May 11, 2007 2:53 PM
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No one should have to be dishonest about the way they were born. This is 2007 - not 1907. We all need to grow up and allow people to live full, happy lives free from discrimination. I'm glad TR Knight is attempting to do so.
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May 11, 2007 2:59 PM
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Be careful when throwing out words like "born with". This is a very touchy subject to people. While I personally DO believe that homosexuality is something that a person is born with, it has yet to be proven, hence no one can really say whether T.R. Knight actually chose or realized he was gay. I'm just glad he doesn't exploit his homosexuality and simply lives with it - good for him.
Nevertheless, I completely support his decision and he now has more respect, in my book, than any other Grey's cast member - by a long shot!
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May 11, 2007 3:37 PM
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A dear friend of mine said it very well a few years ago: "I have brown hair and hazel eyes and I'm gay. I didn't get to choose any of them."
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May 11, 2007 3:41 PM
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I want to congratulate TR for feeling comfortable announcing he is gay.
My dread is that the people consulting him not to come out were other gay males. It seems that many gay men want the male privilege thing so bad (or are afraid of the backlash) that they continue to retreat (deny who they are). This is shortchanging not only themselves but also most people who either do not care or want to be supportive of them.
More people need to be confident and comfortable.
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May 11, 2007 3:51 PM
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C'mon...he's GEORGE! LOL! Good for T.R.! He did what he did and hooray! In this day & age, no one should care about this. Shouldn't even be an issue!
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May 11, 2007 3:59 PM
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I'm "only" 37 but I hope I live long enough to see the day when being gay is a non issue - no one will have to "come out" because it's doesn't matter! I'm straight and have lots of friends - I don't group them by who is what - they are friends...period!
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May 11, 2007 4:26 PM
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tknowzbest, I can really say that TR didn't actually choose his sexuality -- any more than you did. We choose our sexual expression, not our orientation. Can you tell me when the moment was when you "chose" to like your favorite foods or colors or music? You didn't choose, you just like what you're hardwired to like.
Who we love isn't a "preference" ("I prefer John over Jane") or a "choice" ("I choose to love John and not Jane"), it's an orientation, which means it's just simply who we are. Whether it's nature or nurture or both doesn't matter. It's a fact, not an option.
And, yes, everyone, it's not a "lifestyle", either. If you really think an Episcopal bishop in New England, a homeless teen in Arizona and two moms in Montana, for instance, all share the same "lifestyle" because they're all gay -- well, then, I don't know what to say to you. "Billionaire" is a lifestyle. Who you love is who you love.
TR Knight is an American hero and he echoes what everyone who's open about being gay always says, which is that their lives are better because of it. We'll have made real progress not when nobody cares that the TR Knights of the world are gay, but when everybody treats it exactly the way not being gay is treated now -- as a matter of fact.
We are flooded with heterosexuality all the time, from wedding rings and pictures of the wife and kids on the office desk to tabloids and news stories. If I can read all about Patrick Dempsey being a new parent with his wife, then I should also read all about if TR Knight someday has kids with his future husband. Having the two realities being treated equally and not ignoring the gay reality will be true equality.
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May 11, 2007 8:25 PM
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Can I just ask, because it astounds me everytime I hear it, HOW one would CHOOSE a lifestyle that wasn't WHAT THEY WERE? It makes no sense! If being gay WERE a choice and a person CHOSE to be gay wouldn't that mean that's what they WERE in the first place? Am I making sense?
It's not a choice. I have many gay friends and every single one of them has assured me that it is not a choice... it is who they are. More power to them and to T.R.
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May 11, 2007 9:09 PM
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He really hasn't been delivering as George O' Malley all season. That's what's important to me.
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May 12, 2007 12:47 AM
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I'm sorry if this is a touchy subject for some, but my question is, What kind of a moron would think that people get to choose their sexuality? For that matter, as an earlier poster said, did we get to choose the color of our eyes, our hair (without the dye), or even our skin color? The ones out there still trying to perpetuate the myth that a person gets to "choose" their sexuality are living in a fantasy world who also are the same ones who try to tell others what religion they should believe in, and what people should & should not watch on tv and who try to force their beliefs on everyone else yet they are the ones who have the biggest skeletons in their closets. It should not matter one way or another whether someone is gay, a person should be judged only by how they treat others and not based on what the sex is of the person they sleep with.
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May 12, 2007 1:16 PM
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