George chakiris gay

Amidst the privacy in George Chakiris’ personal life, there are several discussions surrounding his sexuality. Since George was never spotted with his girlfriend publicly and never had a wife, many believe that he is gay. West Side Story, of course, had a wealth of gay and bisexual talent among its creators, including book writer Arthur Laurents, composer Leonard Bernstein, director-choreographer Jerome Robbins.

There are many people on the internet who have claimed to have seen George with multiple male partners, while being rather too close with them at clubs and bars in Los Angeles – some have even claimed that George secretly married his long-term partner sometime in the s, but no proof has been provided to support the claims.

For added plausibility, Chakiris has been labeled as gay on many reliable sites. The actor was included on IMDb’s list of gay actors and personalities and had a spot on Factspedia’s list of LGBT Academy Award winners and nominees. George Chakiris (born September 16, ) is an American actor and dancer.

He is best known for his appearance in the film version of West Side Story as Bernardo, the leader of the Sharks gang, for which he won both the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture.

I found myself smiling as soon as I was reading the first couple of pages. To discuss his book and career further, I interviewed Mr. Chakiris over the phone on Nov. You can read a transcription of that interview below and also listen to it here:. Thank you for speaking with me today. Jessica Pickens I feel like I already know you after reading your memoir. It felt like I was chatting with an old friend.

Jessica Pickens Certainly. But I coincidentally met a wonderful writer, Lindsay Harrison, who I ended up doing the book with. She did a really good book with, Tippi Hedren.

George Chakiris. Born: Sep Birthplace:

I knew Lindsay, not well, but I knew her socially. Jessica Pickens And, you know, you said you never thought of yourself writing a book, and you describe yourself in your memoir as being quite shy. So what sort of response have you gotten from your friends and fans? My friends have read the book and have said nice things about it. I have been to a few book signings and gotten really nice responses from some people, generally speaking.

And it was that kind of discussion that helped me remember some things. Jessica Pickens And, you know, like I said, it was a really friendly read. I really do feel strongly about that. Do you have a preference of live performances or films? You come alive in a really wonderful, wonderful way on stage. But it is a bit different from film in that regard.

Performing in front of a live audience has a different energy excitement and everything throughout the theater, certainly for the people on stage. The ball is in your court and. You came very close to both characters. Do you have one you prefer now? George Chakiris Well, you know, first, I loved playing Riff. But when all is said and done, now with all of that behind me, I think I would say I would prefer the role of Bernardo.

In the film version, the role of Bernardo becomes a better role. So that became a better role. Jessica Pickens Was that difficult? Seeing someone else playing a role that you had learned so closely? George Chakiris No no, not at all. Because, you know, of course, Russ Tamblyn is a great friend.