Ellen Page Lesbianism Update: Why The Fuss?

Posted by Michael Musto at 9:00 AM, April 2, 2008

My column this week goes into yet more sexuality talk about Juno star Ellen Page, so I’m bracing myself for the usual rounds of “How dare you?” and “Who cares?” In defense, let me once again get out the same rationales that I dug up when outing Methuselah and tell you why this sort of thing is OK. OK?

Firstly, a celebrity is a public figure whose life is regularly dissected by the media. By pursuing this high-profile profession and becoming a boldface name in the process, they’ve implicitly agreed to this kind of scrutiny (within the law and reason). I always find it amusing that no one ever complains when straight stuff comes out about them—you never hear, “How dare you say that male actor is dating that female actor? This is an outrageous invasion of privacy!” It’s only when the gay word comes up that people suddenly decide gossip is vulgar and irrelevant. But I personally feel that to gossip about every aspect of celebs’ lives EXCEPT the gay stuff is homophobic, hypocritical, and downright silly.

“But it hurts careers!” comes the inevitable response from the outraged. Well, I didn’t MAKE these people gay, I’m just saying they are. It’s up to them to come out or not, but it’s not up to ME to shut up about it. I’m not going to make homosexuality off limits because I might be tapping into the ethical failures of some bigots out there by speaking the truth. I don’t find homosexuality—or hints of it—distasteful at all and I’m not going to cater to those who do by shutting my trap on the subject. And if I should never say anything that might hurt a career, then maybe I should make a point of writing that Will Smith is white, Mel Brooks is young, and Norbit was a really good movie.

What’s more, Ellen Page—who may or may not be gay—is clearly playing along with all the speculation. She’s MAKING people talk by not giving definitive answers about her sexuality. She even did a sketch on Saturday Night Live that seemed to feed right into all the chit chat. By refusing to squawk, “How dare you! I am NOT a lesbian,” she’s letting us think that this kind of talk isn’t appalling to her at all. Even when her publicist called me, she never said, “She’s not a lesbian,” just “That was me with her at the Oscars” (though I hung up on her, so who knows what else she was going to say).

There’s even someone who’s gone on a lot of sites and shrieked that she knows who Ellen’s girlfriend is, even including the girlfriend’s supposed phone number. THAT’S going too far. I just need her address so I can send a wedding gift.

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This Week's La Dolce Musto: More Ellen Page Sexuality Talk

Ellen Page Lesbian Sketch: What Does it Mean?

Posted by Michael Musto at 12:00 PM, March 3, 2008

I just figured out why, when Ellen Page's publicist Kelly Bush called me last week, the number on the Caller ID looked like NBC's. It's because it WAS NBC's. Bush was obviously calling from the set of Saturday Night Live, where Page was rehearsing for her hosting gig two nights ago. And though Bush had called to say it was SHE who accompanied Page to the Oscars and that's not an uncommon practice—i.e., don't assume that means anything about her client—Page did a sketch on SNL that had viewers instantly emailing each other with, "Did she just come out?" Well, I saw it and. . . of course she didn't. It’s comedy! The sketch—in which Page's character tries to explain to boyfriend Andy Samberg that having become all orgiastic at a lesbo concert doesn't mean she's a lesbo herself (“Gay? No way!”)—shows she's in on the talk and can have fun playing around with it. Just because she's playing a closet case doesn't necessarily mean she IS one. By the way, according to at least one website, my blog "seemed to be the impetus" for the sketch. But don't assume that makes ME gay.

Ellen Page Sexuality Update

Posted by Michael Musto at 9:00 AM, February 29, 2008

After speculating about the tomboyish Ellen Page's sexuality, I got a call which I only picked up because the number on the Caller ID was similar to NBC's and I thought it was going to be a TV booking. Instead it was Kelly Bush—Page's publicist and manager—who sounded as if her cat had just gotten stuck in a drainpipe or something. My item had been picked up on Defamer, Bush said, and she wanted me to know that it was SHE who was with Page at the Oscars (though I had been sardonically wondering if it was a mother/girlfriend/whatever). She named a couple of other starlets who also had reps with them at the awards and said it's by no means an unusual practice. (Now I'll have to wonder if THEY'RE gay too.) "I don't know why people are so mean," Bush whinnied in a wounded voice. "It's not mean to wonder if someone's gay," I shrieked, outraged. "But to call her an 'Oscar loser'?" she moaned. "I didn't say that!" I yelped. "Maybe you're illiterate," I added, triumphantly slamming down the phone. Of course maybe I'M the dummy. I later realized I HAD called Page an "Oscar loser" in a short, sassy column item, also questioning her love life. Defamer had picked up the BLOG item, and I thought that's what we were talking about. In any case, I like Ellen Page, who's an appealing talent, so I nobly took "Oscar loser" off the web version faster than Juno gives away her baby. But I'm still livid that a publicist who would never normally call me for anything is so quick on the horn to do spin control whenever the L word comes up! And now, we're back to square zero anyway: IS she?

(Update on the update: I was just reminded that Bush is not only the woman who called Ellen DeGeneres's animal shelter with threats, she's a lesbian.)

Ellen Page: Is She or Isn't She?

Posted by Michael Musto at 12:00 PM, February 27, 2008

I mean, come on already, is she??? You know, Lebanese! She certainly dresses like a, you know, tomboy. And if you google "Ellen Page boyfriend," not a whole lot comes up, except for a link to some interview where she refers to an old beau. And if you google "Ellen Page dating," you get the news that she dated Ben Foster, but then you get a followup saying she denies that ever happened. Who did she go to the Oscars with? I couldn't tell from the cropped shots of her, but it looked like she was maybe with her mother? For guys, that used to signify 100% gay, but for girls, it might just mean young and/or Canadian--or, um, gay. And then there was the web item saying "Ellen Page is an out lesbian," but for all I know the guy who ran that is the same douche who started the whole "Marcia Cross is coming out" campaign. Come on, people, help me out of this mess! Before I get stampeded by publicists shrieking, "This is an invasion of privacy!" (yeah, yeah, shut up, this is what I do), let's put the dykey pieces together. Is Juno a you know? And if so, which male will they quickly match her up with? Zac Efron?