10 Celebrities Forced to Hide Their True Identity

MsMojo

Fame often comes with a price, and for some celebrities, that price was hiding their true selves. Join us as we explore instances where famous people were encouraged, pressured, or downright coerced into concealing their identity to maintain their careers. Discover the stories behind Ben Kingsley, Rita Hayworth, Wayne Brady, Martin Sheen, and more.

Transcript

00:00You could say, as many artists have, yes I am gay, or you could say, no I'm not."

00:08Welcome to Miss Mojo, and today we're looking at instances when famous people were encouraged,

00:13pressured, or downright coerced into hiding who they were to keep working.

00:17Because I'm hosting SNL and I'm like so gay, dude.

00:22Ben Kingsley

00:24The famed British actor realized early in his career that he would have to disguise his heritage.

00:37Born Krishna Banji, a name which honored his father's heritage, his career gained momentum

00:43almost as soon as he changed his last name. Suddenly, roles and opportunities that were

00:48closed to him before had opened. He became one of the most distinguished and varied

00:52actors of the last 60 years. Speaking on his decision in 2016, the actor sees the irony in it.

01:06After all, he won his Oscar for playing Mahatma Gandhi, one of the most important figures in

01:11India's history.

01:13Don't worry for me. I cannot watch the destruction of all that I've lived for.

01:20Rita Hayworth

01:21Marketed as the love goddess, she became known for her trademark looks.

01:26I look my very best, Balin. I want all the hired help to approve of me.

01:31But her final look, as was the case for most stars under the studio system, was manufactured by her

01:37employers. At her first studio, Rita Hayworth was named Rita Cancino, a stage name in itself with the

01:44name Cancino intended to highlight her half-Spanish heritage. In fact, they had her portraying various

01:50races and ethnicities as needed. It was only after she went to Columbia Pictures that she was transformed

02:05into Rita Hayworth. Her Latin heritage was all but hidden through cosmetic procedures, including

02:11electrolysis to alter her hairline. She became a star very quickly from there.

02:15I'll do what it pleases me to do. I always have and I always will.

02:19Wayne Brady

02:20A consummate showman, the whose line is it anyway cast member, masked singer winner,

02:25and host of Let's Make a Deal is just plain likable.

02:28One of the things in Hollywood is there are only a few of us black actors that happen to be working,

02:35and nothing makes me happier than to be able to take another black actor's job.

02:40His entire career is a testament to how joy and charisma is an unbeatable combination.

02:45So when he made the brave decision to come out as pansexual at the age of 51,

02:50it was hard to square how a person who brought others so much laughter could be ashamed of who he is.

02:56I look at it as being able to love whomever I want, no matter the vessel.

03:04But it was shame, Brady said, that made him feel like he couldn't come out.

03:08The message here is that it's never too late to be true to who you are.

03:12I'm not saying that I am going to be in a relationship with another man.

03:17Right.

03:17I'm saying it is very possible for me to be attracted to the man because of the person.

03:25Martin Sheen

03:26You met the general or myself?

03:28No, sir. Not personally.

03:32You worked a lot on your own, haven't you, Captain?

03:34Yes, sir, I have.

03:36Ramon Gerard Antonio Estevez noticed a consistent trend in his life. Whenever he'd make an appointment

03:42and give his name, he would always be treated much better once he showed up.

03:46Martin Sheen's complexion didn't betray his Spanish heritage the way his birth name did.

03:51He figured he would change his name only long enough to get a foothold in the industry.

03:55But Martin Sheen became a star.

03:57I am the Lord your God. Thou shalt worship no other god before me.

04:03Boy, those were the days, huh?

04:04Good afternoon, Mr. President.

04:06Years later, he shared his regrets about giving up his father's name.

04:10Despite professional pressure, his son Emilio took his advice not to make the same choice he did.

04:15It's you and me.

04:18Two hits. Me hitting you, you hitting the floor. Anytime you're ready, pal.

04:22Barry Manilow

04:24Since his breakout as a solo act in the 1970s, the singer-songwriter had been churning out soft

04:30rock classics. For most of that time, Barry Manilow was hiding his sexuality.

04:35I'm a private guy. I'm a musician. Yes, fame hit me, but I never really wanted to go on that ride,

04:42so I kept my dogs to myself. I kept my home to myself.

04:46Like Liberace before him, he was afraid that his loyal, largely female following would abandon him

04:52if they knew he was gay. But even as time passed, laws relaxed, and cultural sentiment changed toward

04:58LGBTQIA plus people, Manilow still feared what coming out would do to his career.

05:04I thought I would be disappointing fans if they knew I was gay, he tells the new issue of People magazine.

05:10He came out in 2017, announcing also that he had married his manager Gary Keefe in 2014 after 36 years

05:17together. Manilow said he was surprised and touched at how supportive his fanbase turned out to be.

05:22How's your husband, Gary? How's married life?

05:2540 years this year.

05:26What?

05:27Come on.

05:28That is unheard of. Tell me, what's the secret?

05:31Separate bathrooms.

05:32Kristen Stewart

05:33Twilight is one of the biggest media franchises ever. Its stars and their public image were a hot

05:39commodity. So the mind fell in love with the lamb. What a stupid lamb.

05:48But Kristen Stewart's relationships were constantly in the news, and there was reportedly pressure on

05:53her to keep her sexual orientation a secret. Told this would affect her bankability as a star,

05:59she wasn't especially open about her private life, even if her relationships with women were known.

06:04Harper not coming out to her parents has nothing to do with you.

06:10How could it not?

06:12She later admitted that she was told to avoid holding her girlfriend's hand for fear it would

06:17sink her chances of getting big roles such as a Marvel superhero. She wasn't open about her queerness

06:22until 2019, introducing the world to her future spouse, screenwriter Dylan Mayer.

06:28You had said at one point that you wanted Guy Fieri to officiate your wedding.

06:32I heard that he officiates gay weddings because his sister is queer, and I was like,

06:37who? I might be able to actually swing that.

06:40Ricky Martin

06:42He was one of the foremost heartthrobs of the 90s, 2000s, and actually, he never stopped being a

06:48heartthrob. Ricky Martin's public persona had a lot to do with his sexual charisma. Speculation

06:54about his sexual orientation existed as early as the year 2000. But Martin didn't even dignify this

07:00with a definite answer.

07:02Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to express the rumors.

07:11But for some reason, I just don't feel like it.

07:15For years, he listened to people who advised against his coming out. Believing it would

07:19end his career and destroy everything he had built, he didn't disclose his identity until 2010.

07:25If I knew how amazing it was going to feel, trust me, I would have done it 10 years ago.

07:30It was only after becoming a parent and doing the introspective work of writing his memoirs that he

07:36felt ready to be open. Elliot Page

07:58Before coming out as trans and non-binary, the actor came out as gay in 2014. Both pronouncements

08:04seemed to come from a place of not wanting to lie by omission. When he was 18, infamous director

08:10Brett Ratner outed Elliot Page on set. Not only did it threaten Page's livelihood in a Hollywood

08:16that was still suspicious, if not hostile, towards LGBTQIA plus talent, but it drove him further into

08:22shame about his sexuality and gender. I was closeted, dressed in heels, and the whole look.

08:28I wasn't okay and I didn't know how to talk about that with anyone.

08:32Vehement anti-trans rhetoric drove Page to come out as transgender in 2020.

08:37He has since become an outspoken advocate, and the creators behind the Umbrella Academy

08:42even rewrote his character to reflect his transition.

08:45Uh, is that an issue for anyone?

08:47No, I'm good with it.

08:49Yeah, me too. Cool.

08:51I'm truly happy for you, Victor.

08:53Merle Oberon

08:55In old Hollywood, the stories of stars' early lives were tweaked and even completely hidden

09:01if they didn't serve the studio's vision for them. But Merle Oberon crafted an entire

09:05backstory for herself that was more fiction than fact.

09:08Day Don Juan kissed me for the first time. No one must touch my lips on a Wednesday.

09:14Afraid that her mixed-race ancestry would work against her in the 1930s movie business,

09:20she practically rewrote her own life story by herself. She listed her birthplace as Tasmania,

09:25Australia rather than her actual one, modern-day Mumbai, India.

09:29This was only found out in her retirement when the town wanted to honor her.

09:34Go to Vienna, Joe. I can't go with you now.

09:37Karen?

09:38No. Words are no good now. They won't do us any good.

09:43The extent of her fictional early life was only uncovered after Oberon's death,

09:48and remains an extreme version of what a celebrity would do to attain a career.

09:52I was always a mistake. I certainly do not belong there now.

09:59Good day, Monsieur.

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10:15Rock Hudson

10:17Well, I mean, stifling. You talk about episodic TV.

10:23That's stifling. You're not allowed to do your best work.

10:26There's no time.

10:27For many years, this leading man's sexual orientation was a known secret among his nearest and dearest.

10:34Publicly, though, Rock Hudson was secretive about being gay to protect his image.

10:38Working in the 1950s, he and his agent had to do a lot of damage control to keep him from being found out.

10:45He even entered a short-lived lavender marriage with his agent's secretary.

10:49He was a creation of the studio system, and he was a valuable product that…

10:54It was only after his death that people felt free to speak about the part of himself he tried so desperately to hide.

11:01His 1985 disclosure that he had HIV and AIDS was one of his last acts as a public figure.

11:07It inspired public conversation that was sorely needed about the deadly pandemic.

11:12He passed away months later.

11:14Women across America swooned over Hudson, whose own sexuality was a closely guarded secret.

11:20How many of these stories did you know about? Tell us in the comments.

11:24Is that maybe going to become part of your life now, or is it too soon to tell?

11:27I don't think so.

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