And, in spite of a recurring role on Family as the “boyfriend” of aggressively masculine tomboy Buddy (Kristy McNichol), it was impossible to imagine Leif ever sleeping with a girl.
Even the teen magazines made quite a mystery of Leif’s romantic interests. One 1977 article, promising “99 Fax About Leif,” divulged only that he enjoyed playing Monopoly, he preferred being shirtless, and he had never told a girl “I love you.” Perhaps he had told a boy, as they lounged around the house shirtless, playing Monopoly?
Leif seemed conflicted about how epicene his public persona should be. At first he was adamantly, defiantly girlish, but when fans began complaining that parents wouldn’t allow his pinups because he looked too much like a girl, he adopted a new persona, sullen and inarticulate, and, he hoped, masculine. I
Instead he became androgynous, a Caravaggio youth. The teen magazines did their part: an article in Tiger Beat announced that his first love was skateboarding “next to music and girls, of course,” and another assured readers that “Leif is a He-Man,” detailing his enthusiasm for jogging, swimming, and horseback riding (still, nary a macho sport in the lot).
Leif released his first album, entitled Leif Garrett, in the fall of 1977, before he was old enough to drive a car; the cover shows him in a maroon shirt, unbuttoned all the way down to his navel, revealing a smooth, firm, but undefined chest, shoulder-length blond hair, and a round androgynous face. The overt eroticism of the cover art belies the romantic innocence of the tracks, mostly covers of rock classics such as “Johnny B. Goode,” “California Girls,” and “Surfin’ USA.” Nevertheless, several tracks manage to avoid the “girl” filler, making Leif a possible successor to gay-friendly Shaun Cassidy
In Feel the Need, released during the summer of 1978, Leif could almost be a drag queen. Now the songs stray far from the heteronormative “Runaround Sue” to “I Was Made or Dancing” and “Without You,” which omit pronouns and girls’ names.
Leif's teen idol star fell quickly during the 1980s, when glam gave way to cowboy machismo, so he returned to television, with a swishy role in The Outsiders, trying too hard in Cheerleader Camp, and guest spots, sometimes playing himself, on a variety of tv dramas. He continued to tour, as a solo performer and in his new band, Godspeed, performed in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and in the 2000s, parodied himself in Dickie Roberts, Former Child Star. He even parodied his various arrests and drug problems on The World's Dumbest Criminals.
Leif released his first album, entitled Leif Garrett, in the fall of 1977, before he was old enough to drive a car; the cover shows him in a maroon shirt, unbuttoned all the way down to his navel, revealing a smooth, firm, but undefined chest, shoulder-length blond hair, and a round androgynous face. The overt eroticism of the cover art belies the romantic innocence of the tracks, mostly covers of rock classics such as “Johnny B. Goode,” “California Girls,” and “Surfin’ USA.” Nevertheless, several tracks manage to avoid the “girl” filler, making Leif a possible successor to gay-friendly Shaun Cassidy
In Feel the Need, released during the summer of 1978, Leif could almost be a drag queen. Now the songs stray far from the heteronormative “Runaround Sue” to “I Was Made or Dancing” and “Without You,” which omit pronouns and girls’ names.
Here he looks like Tim Curry in The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Leif's teen idol star fell quickly during the 1980s, when glam gave way to cowboy machismo, so he returned to television, with a swishy role in The Outsiders, trying too hard in Cheerleader Camp, and guest spots, sometimes playing himself, on a variety of tv dramas. He continued to tour, as a solo performer and in his new band, Godspeed, performed in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, and in the 2000s, parodied himself in Dickie Roberts, Former Child Star. He even parodied his various arrests and drug problems on The World's Dumbest Criminals.
No one could possibly have imagined it in the 1970s, but this person who out-swished Liberace was actually straight! It was just matter of his natural femininity combined with androgynous glam expectations. In real life, he's had a variety of girlfriends and no hints of boyfriends. Actually, I'm not aware of any statements indicating awareness that LGBT people exist.
The nude photos are on RG Beefcake and Boyfriends
