Gay actor and activist Michael Kearns dies at 76
Actor Michael Kearns has passed away aged 76. (Amanda Edwards/Getty)
Actor and activist Michael Kearns, regarded as one of the first openly gay actors and among the first openly HIV-positive actors in Hollywood, has died at 76.
On Wednesday (7 October), journalist and Kearns’ friend Karen Ocamb reported in the Los Angeles Blade that he died Monday (5 October). The cause of death has not been reported.
“Today, a stunned gay theatre and AIDS activism world is mourning the loss of the ubiquitous and creative artist who helped so many, literally touched so many, and probably died not knowing how beloved he really was,” Ocamb wrote.
Kearns is best known for his appearances in Body Double alongside the Emmy-winning film And the Band Played On.
Also, in the ABC dramedy Life Goes On, Kearns portrayed an HIV-positive character. This came after he revealed his own HIV-positive diagnosis in 1991.
“I’m doing this for all people with HIV,” he told Ocamb at the time. “HIV is nothing to be ashamed of. For me to remain silent indicates shame or fear on some level.”
Additionally, on stage, Kearns was best known for his role in Jerker. The play is about two gay men who develop a romance over a phone-sex line. Jerker sparked a national controversy after excerpts aired on a Los Angeles radio station.
‘Thank you, Michael, for all you gave this world’
Kearns came out as gay in the mid-1970s. Furthermore, in 1984, he co-founded Artists Confronting AIDS and became a commissioner of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays.
In 1992, Kearns married Philip Juwig, who died the same year. Then, in 1997, Kearns adopted a daughter, Katherine.
On Sunday (11 October), Kearns was scheduled to attend the Circa: Queer Histories Festival to commemorate National Coming Out Day.
A post on the theatre’s Facebook page said: “We share the community’s sorrow in this loss and celebrate the incredible impact he has had on our mission and the HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ Rights movements. Thank you, Michael, for all you gave this world.”
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