Karamo Brown, Chrishell Stause, and Latrice Royale.Photo:Frazer Harrison/WireImage, Greg Grudt/UPI/Shutterstock, Dave J Hogan/Getty
Frazer Harrison/WireImage, Greg Grudt/UPI/Shutterstock, Dave J Hogan/Getty
While some stars' stories, like Zamora’s, have helped push progress on LGBTQ+ rights and education forward, others instances, like Zeke Smith being outed onSurvivor,show us that there is still a long way to go.
As Pride Month kicks off, read on for some of the LGBTQ+ stars who made an impact, changed the game and keep us tuning in.
01of 21Norman KorpiNorman Korpi.Mark Mainz/GettyThe Real World: New Yorkwas a groundbreaking series not only because it was the first of its kind, but the way it authentically addressed the issues.During that inaugural season in 1992, Norman Korpi came out to his housemates, becoming one of the first people to do so on television. And the impact of his honesty and the support he got from his fellow roommates is something that has stood the test of time, much like the show itself.“I still have like, 25 boxes of these long, touching letters from people that didn’t have a voice,“he told PEOPLE in 2021. “When they saw a group of seven people living together and that six of them loved and supported a gay person, forget me coming out. It was really that relationship of those people — the Beckys and Erics and the Julies — that the people could see themselves and say, ‘Look, he’s part of the cool kids, he’s on the cool network. That’s the coolest thing that you could be on, and that’s me.'”
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Norman Korpi
Norman Korpi.Mark Mainz/Getty
Mark Mainz/Getty
The Real World: New Yorkwas a groundbreaking series not only because it was the first of its kind, but the way it authentically addressed the issues.
During that inaugural season in 1992, Norman Korpi came out to his housemates, becoming one of the first people to do so on television. And the impact of his honesty and the support he got from his fellow roommates is something that has stood the test of time, much like the show itself.
“I still have like, 25 boxes of these long, touching letters from people that didn’t have a voice,“he told PEOPLE in 2021. “When they saw a group of seven people living together and that six of them loved and supported a gay person, forget me coming out. It was really that relationship of those people — the Beckys and Erics and the Julies — that the people could see themselves and say, ‘Look, he’s part of the cool kids, he’s on the cool network. That’s the coolest thing that you could be on, and that’s me.'”
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Pedro Zamora
As one of the stars ofReal World: San Franciscoin 1994,Pedro Zamorawas the first person openly living with AIDS to be featured on television.
Prior to his casting on the show, Zamora had dedicated his life to raising awareness about the illness and advocating the importance of education and prevention.
His stint onThe Real Worldgave him a bigger platform to reach wider audiences and shattered myths about HIV/AIDS in the process. He also broke barriers whenhis commitment ceremony to partner Sean Sasser was the first same-sex ceremony in television history.
03of 21Richard HatchMonty Brinton/CBS Photo Archive/GettyThe first season ofSurvivorin 2000 was a blockbuster success in no small part to Richard Hatch, who was openly gay (at the time, still rare to see on television), a skilled player and, it must be said, constantly naked. Hatch’s season also was memorable for the relationship he developed with former Navy SEAL Rudy, who was not shy about his homophobia but ended up becoming great friend with Hatch. (“For a homosexual, he’s one of the nicest guys I ever met,” Rudy said,according to theInside Survivorblog. “You know, he’s got leadership ability, and if these people here would listen to him, he would take ’em a long way.”)In the years that followed, Hatch had some highs and lows; he spent nearly three years in federal prison for failing to pay taxes on the $1 million prize, andtold PEOPLEthat the federal fees and missed work “more than wiped out” the prize money.But whenPEOPLE checked in with him for the show’s 20th anniversary, he had a positive outlook. “I’m doing well,” he said. “I have a lot going on. I’ve got a great family. I’ve been with a wonderful man since 2003. I’m happy.”
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Richard Hatch
Monty Brinton/CBS Photo Archive/Getty
The first season ofSurvivorin 2000 was a blockbuster success in no small part to Richard Hatch, who was openly gay (at the time, still rare to see on television), a skilled player and, it must be said, constantly naked. Hatch’s season also was memorable for the relationship he developed with former Navy SEAL Rudy, who was not shy about his homophobia but ended up becoming great friend with Hatch. (“For a homosexual, he’s one of the nicest guys I ever met,” Rudy said,according to theInside Survivorblog. “You know, he’s got leadership ability, and if these people here would listen to him, he would take ’em a long way.”)
In the years that followed, Hatch had some highs and lows; he spent nearly three years in federal prison for failing to pay taxes on the $1 million prize, andtold PEOPLEthat the federal fees and missed work “more than wiped out” the prize money.
But whenPEOPLE checked in with him for the show’s 20th anniversary, he had a positive outlook. “I’m doing well,” he said. “I have a lot going on. I’ve got a great family. I’ve been with a wonderful man since 2003. I’m happy.”
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Danny Roberts
Danny Roberts.Daymon Gardner/Paramount+
At the time, Roberts was a newly-out gay Southerner, dating a man whose identity had to be concealed because he was in the military and the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy was still in effect.
“My coming-out story is the genesis of a lot of other people’s in that generation’s coming-out story, but I think so much of that is timing,” Robertsreflected 22 years after the show premiered. “Matthew Shepard was murdered [for being gay] a year before [that] season filmed and it kicked off a whole new energy in the LGBT movement. And then I landed right in the middle of that.”
“I just kept waiting: ‘Are they going to shoehorn this into the end?’ And then I realized, ‘Wow, that’s the end of it.’ And they absolutely cut it,” he told theLos Angeles Times. “It feels like a huge missed opportunity.”
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The ‘Fab Five’
Bravo/Everett
Queer Eye for the Straight Guywas a revolutionary concept when it launched in 2003, making its “fab five” group of expertsTed Allen,Jai Rodriguez,Carson Kressley, Thom Filicia and Kyan Douglas and household names and bringing a kinder type of makeover show to the masses.
06of 21Jillian MichaelsTrae Patton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/GettyJillian Michaelsrose to prominence as the no-nonsense, tell it like it is, tough coach onThe Biggest Loser,which premiered in 2004.However, she left after season 11 of the hit NBC show to focus on her family with her then-partner, Heidi Rhoades.The two unexpectedly welcomed son Phoenix Michaels Rhoades and adopted daughter Lukensia Michaels Rhoades, at the same time: The fitness trainer received news that Lukensia’s visa had been approved right as Rhoades was going into labor with Phoenix. A few days later, they brought their two-year-old daughter home from Haiti.Michaels later made a comeback for season 14 and 15 ofThe Biggest Loser, beforeexiting for the last timedue to “some fundamental differences [withLoser‘s producers] that have existed for a while.”She and Rhoades split in 2018 and she began dating fashion designer DeShanna Marie Minuto,whom she marriedin an intimate ceremony in 2022.
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Jillian Michaels
Trae Patton/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty
Jillian Michaelsrose to prominence as the no-nonsense, tell it like it is, tough coach onThe Biggest Loser,which premiered in 2004.However, she left after season 11 of the hit NBC show to focus on her family with her then-partner, Heidi Rhoades.
The two unexpectedly welcomed son Phoenix Michaels Rhoades and adopted daughter Lukensia Michaels Rhoades, at the same time: The fitness trainer received news that Lukensia’s visa had been approved right as Rhoades was going into labor with Phoenix. A few days later, they brought their two-year-old daughter home from Haiti.
Michaels later made a comeback for season 14 and 15 ofThe Biggest Loser, beforeexiting for the last timedue to “some fundamental differences [withLoser‘s producers] that have existed for a while.”
She and Rhoades split in 2018 and she began dating fashion designer DeShanna Marie Minuto,whom she marriedin an intimate ceremony in 2022.
07of 21Aneesa FerreiraAneesa Ferreira.Jim Spellman/WireImageComing intoThe Real World: Chicagoin 2002, Aneesa Ferreira pulled no punches about who she was, telling everyone she is “gay, Black and Jewish.“And while she was proud of who she is, at the time, she wasn’t aware that her actions were as pivotal as they turned out to be.“I was self-aware, but not to the point where I was ever doing anything purposely. I was just living very rebelliously, [thinking], ‘I’m a female lesbian. I don’t care what you think about my life and my choices.’ I didn’t think about how people were going to receive me or how the community was going to look at me,“she toldNylon.“I kind of lived like nobody was watching. I think that gives you the most authentic perspective and that allows you to really see something for what it is because no matter how you edit it, it still is me.“But whether she meant to or not, she became a representative of the LGBTQ+ community, with many people expressing their gratitude for her honesty to this day.“I still have people that come up to me, and they’re like, ‘Hey, you were our only representation.’ And these are white, very white, straight-looking men that are like, ‘Thank you,'” she told the publication. “You would never think that there could be a connection there, but I guess that if there’s some type of visibility and it has a strong presence, then that’s something positive for the community.”
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Aneesa Ferreira
Aneesa Ferreira.Jim Spellman/WireImage
Jim Spellman/WireImage
Coming intoThe Real World: Chicagoin 2002, Aneesa Ferreira pulled no punches about who she was, telling everyone she is “gay, Black and Jewish.”
And while she was proud of who she is, at the time, she wasn’t aware that her actions were as pivotal as they turned out to be.
“I was self-aware, but not to the point where I was ever doing anything purposely. I was just living very rebelliously, [thinking], ‘I’m a female lesbian. I don’t care what you think about my life and my choices.’ I didn’t think about how people were going to receive me or how the community was going to look at me,“she toldNylon.
“I kind of lived like nobody was watching. I think that gives you the most authentic perspective and that allows you to really see something for what it is because no matter how you edit it, it still is me.”
But whether she meant to or not, she became a representative of the LGBTQ+ community, with many people expressing their gratitude for her honesty to this day.
“I still have people that come up to me, and they’re like, ‘Hey, you were our only representation.’ And these are white, very white, straight-looking men that are like, ‘Thank you,'” she told the publication. “You would never think that there could be a connection there, but I guess that if there’s some type of visibility and it has a strong presence, then that’s something positive for the community.”
08of 21Clay AikenClay Aiken.Roy Rochlin/GettFive years after his run onAmerican Idol,Clay Aikencame out as gay in aPEOPLE cover storyin 2008.The announcement also coincided with the announcement of “the most important thing in my life,” newborn son Parker, whom he had just welcomed with his best friend, music producer Jaymes Foster.In the months that followed, Aiken reflected on what coming out meant to him: “I think that hopefully, less than inspiring people, I will have an opportunity to open people’s eyes to different viewpoints and different possibilities in their life.”
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Clay Aiken
Clay Aiken.Roy Rochlin/Gett
Roy Rochlin/Gett
Five years after his run onAmerican Idol,Clay Aikencame out as gay in aPEOPLE cover storyin 2008.
The announcement also coincided with the announcement of “the most important thing in my life,” newborn son Parker, whom he had just welcomed with his best friend, music producer Jaymes Foster.
In the months that followed, Aiken reflected on what coming out meant to him: “I think that hopefully, less than inspiring people, I will have an opportunity to open people’s eyes to different viewpoints and different possibilities in their life.”
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Karamo Brown
Karamo Brown.David Livingston/Getty
Most notably, Brown began serving as a culture expert on Netflix’s revival ofQueer Eyein 2018. He also competed onDancing with the Starsin 2019.
In addition to hisQueer Eyeduties, he currently hosts his syndicated talk show,Karamo, and is a father to two adult sons, Jason and Chris.
10of 21Christian SirianoChristian Siriano.Christian Sirianobecame the youngest winner ofProject Runwaywhen he snagged first place on season 4 of Bravo reality competition series — a distinction he still holds today.“I was a young, gay boy on a television show in 2008. [I was] very out, and the whole world got to judge me. And that was really hard. 2008 was a totally different time,” Siriano told Glossy ahead of Pride 2021.In the years since that experience,Siriano has become a bit of an “accidental activist” (in his own words)andhelped others who haven’t been as well-represented be seen on the red carpet.
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Christian Siriano
Christian Siriano.
Christian Sirianobecame the youngest winner ofProject Runwaywhen he snagged first place on season 4 of Bravo reality competition series — a distinction he still holds today.
“I was a young, gay boy on a television show in 2008. [I was] very out, and the whole world got to judge me. And that was really hard. 2008 was a totally different time,” Siriano told Glossy ahead of Pride 2021.
In the years since that experience,Siriano has become a bit of an “accidental activist” (in his own words)andhelped others who haven’t been as well-represented be seen on the red carpet.
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JoJo Siwa
Jojo Siwa.Rodin Eckenroth/Getty Images
In 2016, Siwa shot to fame when her songs “Boomerang” and “I Can Make You Dance” went viral, and she became a superstar among the tween set.
Five years later, the dancing phenom, then 17,came out as a member of the LGBTQ+ community.
“Personally I have never, ever, ever been this happy before and it feels really awesome. I’ve been happy for a little bit now. It’s just so, so, so awesome,” Siwasaid during an Instagram Live. “You guys probably haven’t seen me this happy since I was on tour.”
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Rachel Robinson
Rachel Robinson, Natalie Gee.Rachel Robinson/ instagram
Life is all about family for formerRoad RulesandThe Challengestar Rachel Robinson.
She and her partner, Natalie Gee, welcomed twin boys Jesse and Jack in 2017 and announced they got married in the same post.
“The world is brighter, this life has more meaning, oh & we got married today — please refer to@natgeebeautyas my wife. Thanks 😘 ,”Robinson wrote.
13of 21Latrice RoyaleLatrice Royale.Mike Coppola/Getty ImagesLatrice Royale first graced our small screens in 2012 on season 4 ofRuPauls Drag Race, came in fourth place and walked away with the title of Miss Congeniality her original season.Her big personality and memorable backstory (going from serving 18 months in prison for missing a probation meeting in 2006 to becoming a Drag Race contestant just a few years later) made her a fan favorite, and Royale came back again forRuPaul’s Drag Race All Starsseasons 1 and 4.
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Latrice Royale
Latrice Royale.Mike Coppola/Getty Images
Latrice Royale first graced our small screens in 2012 on season 4 ofRuPauls Drag Race, came in fourth place and walked away with the title of Miss Congeniality her original season.
Her big personality and memorable backstory (going from serving 18 months in prison for missing a probation meeting in 2006 to becoming a Drag Race contestant just a few years later) made her a fan favorite, and Royale came back again forRuPaul’s Drag Race All Starsseasons 1 and 4.
14of 21Jazz JenningsJohn Lamparski/GettyJazz Jenningsbecame a face of LGBTQ+ advocacy at a young age, as one of the youngest documented children with gender dysphoria who told her story on20/20andThe Rosie Show.In 2015, she began starring in a TLC show,I Am Jazz,which has followed her through adolescence and into her college years at Harvard.Unfortunately, that comes with a priceas she told PEOPLE, “I get death threats almost on a daily basis. People will comment on my photos saying, ‘Burn in hell. Kill yourself. You’re in abomination.'“She continued, “But when someone sends a threat to where you live and they know your location, it’s a really, really scary feeling knowing that someone is kind of stalking you a little bit and they have these ill intentions.“Still, Jennings chooses to march forward without fear or hesitation. “I know I can handle a lot and that I have a thick skin, and life has challenged and tested me in so many ways,“she told PEOPLEahead of the season 8 premiere of the TLC show. “Looking back like,Damn, I’m a badass bitch.And I know it and I claim that.”
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Jazz Jennings
John Lamparski/Getty
Jazz Jenningsbecame a face of LGBTQ+ advocacy at a young age, as one of the youngest documented children with gender dysphoria who told her story on20/20andThe Rosie Show.In 2015, she began starring in a TLC show,I Am Jazz,which has followed her through adolescence and into her college years at Harvard.
Unfortunately, that comes with a priceas she told PEOPLE, “I get death threats almost on a daily basis. People will comment on my photos saying, ‘Burn in hell. Kill yourself. You’re in abomination.'”
She continued, “But when someone sends a threat to where you live and they know your location, it’s a really, really scary feeling knowing that someone is kind of stalking you a little bit and they have these ill intentions.”
Still, Jennings chooses to march forward without fear or hesitation. “I know I can handle a lot and that I have a thick skin, and life has challenged and tested me in so many ways,“she told PEOPLEahead of the season 8 premiere of the TLC show. “Looking back like,Damn, I’m a badass bitch.And I know it and I claim that.”
15of 21Audrey MiddletonAudrey Middleton.courtesy CBSBig Brotherwelcomed its first trans contestant when Middleton entered the competition series in 2015.Though she was eliminated early on in the game, Middleton became an early fan favorite as she was open about her transitioning journey. However, in 2019, she alleged that the decision to reveal she was trans wasn’t necessarily hers.“The producers told me, there was so much positivity around Caitlyn Jenner’s coming out, they didn’t want to be the only network airing negativity,” she wrote in athread on Twitter. “They said if I didn’t come out it would look bad and then told me I should come out when the [Champagne] was popped.#BB21.“CBS refuted the tweets, tellingNewsweek, “Audrey made it clear that she wanted to use this platform as an opportunity to openly share her story, which we completely respected was hers to tell. We were then, and remain now, excited and proud to have had her on the show and continue to consider her a part of ourBig Brotherfamily.”
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Audrey Middleton
Audrey Middleton.courtesy CBS
Big Brotherwelcomed its first trans contestant when Middleton entered the competition series in 2015.
Though she was eliminated early on in the game, Middleton became an early fan favorite as she was open about her transitioning journey. However, in 2019, she alleged that the decision to reveal she was trans wasn’t necessarily hers.
“The producers told me, there was so much positivity around Caitlyn Jenner’s coming out, they didn’t want to be the only network airing negativity,” she wrote in athread on Twitter. “They said if I didn’t come out it would look bad and then told me I should come out when the [Champagne] was popped.#BB21.”
CBS refuted the tweets, tellingNewsweek, “Audrey made it clear that she wanted to use this platform as an opportunity to openly share her story, which we completely respected was hers to tell. We were then, and remain now, excited and proud to have had her on the show and continue to consider her a part of ourBig Brotherfamily.”
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Zeke Smith
Zeke Smith.Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
When Zeke Smith joinedSurvivorin 2017,he planned on playing his best game, with zero intentions of coming out as trans.
“I think he hoped others would believe that trans people are dangerous and fraudulent,” he told PEOPLE. “That reasoning is infinitely worse than him outing me because it’s the same one used to discriminate against, attack and murder trans people.”
Thankfully, no one took the bait.
“What’s great is that nobody bought it,” Smith said. “It’s important people see he lost that fight. The message should be clear that hate will always lose.”
In 2022, Smithproposed to his longtime beau,Superstoreactor Nico Santos during the GLAAD Media Awards.
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Kaycee Clark
Kaycee Clark.Sonja Flemming/CBS via Getty
Another history maker, Kaycee Clark became the first openly lesbian winner of CBS’Big Brotherwhen she took home the $500,000 cash prize in 2018’s season 20 of the hit show. The then-30-year-old fan favorite beat out Tyler Crispen, who was the purported front-runner throughout the show.
Clark’s win came five years after Andy Herren, the first openly gay man, took home the grand prize in 2013.
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Are You The One Season 8
19of 21Chrishell StauseChrishell Stause.Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesThe journey to finding love was a bit complicated for Stause, who — for most of her life — identified as being straight. In aninterview withVogue Australia, she even admitted to kissing girls her whole life, but “more for the guys’ reaction.“However, an encounter with Australian singer G Flip (who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns) led her to see things differently.The two first met in 2021, and shared a kiss while at theSelling Sunsetstar’s home in February 2022. Thoughshe was still unsure, Stause said she felt an attraction to the “Get Me Outta Here” singer, and that started to change her outlook on dating: “[It] opened my brain up to the fact that I’m attracted to energy, not whatever physical thing that people have in their head. I don’t have a type.“The love connection clearly stuck, as the lovebirdsannounced they tied the knotin a non-traditional ceremony on May 10.
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Chrishell Stause
Chrishell Stause.Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
The journey to finding love was a bit complicated for Stause, who — for most of her life — identified as being straight. In aninterview withVogue Australia, she even admitted to kissing girls her whole life, but “more for the guys’ reaction.”
However, an encounter with Australian singer G Flip (who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns) led her to see things differently.
The two first met in 2021, and shared a kiss while at theSelling Sunsetstar’s home in February 2022. Thoughshe was still unsure, Stause said she felt an attraction to the “Get Me Outta Here” singer, and that started to change her outlook on dating: “[It] opened my brain up to the fact that I’m attracted to energy, not whatever physical thing that people have in their head. I don’t have a type.”
The love connection clearly stuck, as the lovebirdsannounced they tied the knotin a non-traditional ceremony on May 10.
20of 21Francesca FaragoFrancesca Farago, Jesse Sulli.Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty ImagesOn May 2,Too Hot to HandleandPerfect Matchalum Francesca Farago announced she wasofficially engagedto her boyfriend, TikTok star Jesse Sullivan, who is trans.“WE’RE ENGAGED🤍 a glimpse into the most magical night ever💍 obsessed with our family.. what is life !!” Faragocaptioned a carousel of images from the special moment.The two began dating shortly after Farago filmedPerfect Matchin 2022.
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Francesca Farago
Francesca Farago, Jesse Sulli.Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
On May 2,Too Hot to HandleandPerfect Matchalum Francesca Farago announced she wasofficially engagedto her boyfriend, TikTok star Jesse Sullivan, who is trans.
“WE’RE ENGAGED🤍 a glimpse into the most magical night ever💍 obsessed with our family.. what is life !!” Faragocaptioned a carousel of images from the special moment.
The two began dating shortly after Farago filmedPerfect Matchin 2022.
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Alex Newell
Andrew Eccles/Oxygen Media/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal/Getty
source: people.com
