Like Johnson, Wright spent much of his last marriage, which lasted until his death, in Europe. In 19, the writer Richard Wright married-both times to white women of Russian Jewish background. He tried to have the marriage annulled, but when that proved unsuccessful, he received a divorce from his devoted wife, Alice Jones, and agreed to pay her a monthly pension. In 1924 socialite Kip Rhinelander made headlines after marrying a mixed-race maid of Caribbean and English background. He was arrested for his romances with white women and often lived abroad to avoid persecution in a United States where Jim Crow was still going strong. Supreme Court didn’t legalize interracial marriage until 1967, but a number of famous people, both in and out of Hollywood, married across cultural lines years before the high court’s landmark decision.īlack boxer Jack Johnson, for example, married three white women-all no later than 1925. Greene remarked of their cosy living situation: “When one turned over the other had to do likewise… his thighs were as perfect as a human being could be.Actress Lena Horne faced a backlash after marrying a white man. Linclon also shared a narrow bed with companion Billy Greene in his ’20s. Not forgetting his roots, Lincoln several times offered Speed a government appointment – only to be rejected every time. In his early adulthood, the President shared a bed with Joshua Speed – who later became a Congressman. One of America’s most iconic Presidents, Abe’ also spent a large portion of his life spooning with men. However, historians do not agree as to the nature of the letters – with some insisting they are purely platonic. He added: “You should not have taken advantage of my sensibility to steal into my affections without my consent.”
I shall only tell you that ’til you bade us Adieu, I hardly knew the value you had taught my heart to set upon you. He wrote in another letter, after the departure of Laurens: “I wish, my Dear Laurens, it might be in my power, by action rather than words to convince you that I love you. In one letter, Hamilton described himself as a “jealous lover” over Laurens failing to reply, adding: “Like a jealous lover, when I thought you slighted my caresses, my affection was alarmed and my vanity piqued.” Alexander HamiltonĪs fans of musical Hamilton know, founding father Alexander Hamilton never got to be President – after scandal about his tumultuous personal life.Īs well as his affair with a woman, doubt has also been cast over his relationships with men.ĭuring the American Revolution, his letters to close friends John Laurens and Marquis de Lafayette grew more affectionate and flowery – while many accounts describe Hamilton as “feminine”. However, opponents made much mileage out of suggestive innuendo – with bumper stickers joking: “All the way with LBJ, but don’t go near the YMCA.” 5. Johnson insisted he had no idea about Jackson’s personal life, saying: “I couldn’t have been more shocked about Walter Jenkins if I’d heard that Lady Bird had tried to kill the Pope.” However, he dodged scandals himself when his close personal friend and de-facto Chief of Staff Walter Jenkins was outed.Īhead of the 1964 Presidential election, Jenkins was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct with another man in a public YMCA restroom in Washington DC – forcing him to resign. Lyndon B Johnson served as the 37th President from 1963 to 1969 – amid showdowns over government persecutions of gay people.
The late Joan Rivers added fuel to the conspiracy theory fire, when she joked of a gay President: “We already have it with Obama… you know Michelle is a tr***y”.Īlex Jones of Info Wars took the joke to heart – as did Pastor James David Manning, who prophesied that Vladimir Putin would ‘out’ Obama.
Not every rumour about a President’s sex life is credible. The 44th and current President is a strong supporter of LGBT equality – and his emphatic support has sparked speculation among homophobes.Ĭonspiracy theorist Wayne Marsden claimed previously that Obama “used basketball pick-up games to pick up men”, and had “homosexual trysts with Representative Artur Davis, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick and Senate majority leader Bill Frist”.