The sentence in the intro "he is gay; a homosexual". The word "gay" had to be explained!

@@martijnspruit It didn't..... it wasn't that long ago. They always include different terms. It's part of the pattern when creating an interview.

I wonder if there’s a degree to which she asks on behalf of the average audience viewer rather than out of personal bias or curiosity, so he can correct common misconceptions. But yes, her questions are definitely evidence of a dehumanizing zeitgeist, regardless of the intention behind them.

@@judethaddaeus9742 This was 2 years after the "gay cancer" scare began in NYC no less. I'm amazed at how gracious he sounds here. True MVP.

its 1 in 100 at best

at 4:50

Harvey is a legend, so damn honest and a beautiful man in and out.

Amazed and proud of Harvey, doing the hard work, schooling Barbara Walters 40 years ago…

@@davidj.7227 I didn’t know he was gay I real life. I knew his character was gay in Mrs Doubtfire. I have respect for him because he respects heterosexual people

So true.

The only victim in all this was tithe woman you were married to. You lied to a person making her believe you were someone she knew and that makes you a really bad person. I wonder what other secrets you are hiding from the one you say is the love of your life.

Oh shut the fuck up and give the man a break. It was a different time and being gay was not like how it was today. Stop trying to bully this man because he simply didn’t want to deal with any bullshit from people.

@@dirkdiggler2430 Do you have any idea how dangerous it was to be an openly gay man in the past? I’m sure OP didn’t get married with the intention of hurting his wife; he probably felt like he had no other choice, because he was living in a world where gay men were viewed as child molestors and violence against LGBT people was rampant. Maybe if less people were homophobic bigots, people like himself wouldn’t have been forced to live a lie.

Personally

I know I never realized it! Sexy!

Torch Song Trilogy is one of my favorite movies. I remember seeing it for the first time thirty years ago and how poignant it was. Harvey is a legend.

+friday13thirteen We were underground for a long time

For TOO long!!

Yeah the early 1980's were a little bit weird with regard to being gay. You had the whole HIV problem - which terrified a lot of us.

I don't think she was being genuine. Barbara Walters is not an ignorant woman and even in 1983 she was very worldly. Especially someone in show business in New York City, she likely had many gay friends. She had to ask these ignorant questions for the uninformed Americans. You have to read between the lines. For example, she said, "When did you know you were gay?" not "When did you decide to be gay?" or something absurd. In 20 years, I think we will look back on 20/20s recent profiles on transgender people in the same way.

This was actually 1983, a year before HIV had even been diagnosed as the cause of AIDS and before national awareness really began. Things got very bad in the next few years.

People decided to focus on Walter's "archaic" syntax. Rather than the contemporary action of having a reporter genuinely present a gay man winning in his life journey 🤷🏽

Ohhhh

@@cesarbugarini499 let's not sit here and pretend like Barbara Walters is some LGBTQ Saint. She was ultimately an old conservative white woman, and for all the pretending we're doing here she promoted white conservative attitudes towards life every day on the TV. What this is great proof of is that these stories and people have always existed, but the work of people like Walters helped to fight against liberation.

@@riverphoenix2848 Sure, but she also described a play about a gay couple as a "wonderfully sentimental love story" in 1983 and that's progressive by the standards of the day.

@@riverphoenix2848 Pointing out something she did well for the time doesn’t mean she wasn’t flawed. Nobody is maintaining her to be some sort of LGBT savior, they’re only pointing out that this was a big deal to show on the news during the height of the aids crisis.

Have to agree... He was hot AF! 🔥👍

@@goldilox369 Agreed. If you weren't gay before, you're gay now. He was a stunning figure.

Agreed.

Yeah! When I saw the thumbnail, I thought I was looking at Mel Gibson or someone like that

He sounds like an undercover serial killer. He deserves an audiobook ASAP.

I was going to make the same comment. They're sitting closely, they're leaning toward each other, no one's folding their arms or covering part of their face. They're both solely devoted to asking honest questions, giving honest answers, and reacting to those answers honestly. One could easily assume they grew up together.

Was babba wawwa really THIS misinformed about gay people in 1983!!!???

@@ericlopez9107 I think she was more so playing “devils advocate” and asking questions which seem really stupid and ignorant just so that when he answered them all the homophobes would see those questions and get an answer to them.

That is amazing! I find it very moving to think of him taking the time to sit down and write a reply to your letter. I love him even more now.

How exciting.

It was a different time... *at least that's what the elders taught me to say*

Nate Ben-Horin It was a very different time and she was presenting a insight into a world that not many people knew or were aware of. God back then people thought Liberace was heterosexual!! Things have changed enormously since that interview was broadcast. I remember the 80s and it’s hard for me to remember how closeted things were then.

Well observed!

Not bordering...blatantly insulting and ignorant.

I would not be gentle I would be the exact opposite

Smart guy and talented!!!

Impressive actor

He always has been. Thats why he has been a role model and inspiration. On these very difficulty topics, he nails it in the least number of words possible

They were friends and Walters purposely asked the questions that way in order to educate the many ignorant members of her viewing audience.

He said in another interview that he had her in mind for the role; knew she could deliver the lines. She became like a mother in the cast, when the AIDS epidemic hit; full of support and compassion: even brought chicken soup, thinking it could help! (Jewish mother recipe!)

Rogeee I too was shocked

He's a sexy guy.

He was young here but regardless his spirit is brilliant and strong, which is attractive to anyone. He knows who he is, and isn't afraid to express it.

Its the open shirt.

He has said in recent interviews that he feels strongly in letting the young people lead in terms of LGBQT+ initiatives. So many activists do not think that way, but a power struggle between old and young rarely produces anything worthwhile. And a lot of his work is available online now -- and hopefully being digitally archived.

How expensive is Barbara WAlters?Can she be bought?

I think he said "You would've had to fight your censors...." (All those network executives who would have objected and refused to air such a segment). Either way though... Harvey is brilliantly correct and I love that he said that to her. He has lived the message "I am what I am" all these years, and he does it beautifully. I admire him so much.

Same

Such a very smart man. A hero in his time and now

I agree....

They'd be 5 years old .....

It's the kind of fierce I wish I was, soft spoken and kind, but unflinching and honest and true to himself, as well as doing right by the rest of us by representing queer people so wonderfully :) He's iconic

Please go watch his monologue in torch song, splendid

I'm so hard of hearing my phone vibrates when she talks.

+OneUpdateataTime Not for those of us who lived through it. Stuff like this was really important.

Internet Omatic that must've been horrible

+OneUpdateataTime I actually think she's pretending to be ignorant and by the end flips it around to a pro-LGBT message. When Harvey tells her that SHE knows that there other gay people on Broadway and in films, she doesn't disagree. But yes, I wanted to scream over some of those questions.

+Chiedu Egbuniwe Barbara Walters knew some of these were ignorant questions at the time - it's the only way to approach the subject matter to get Harvey to give the "correct answers" for the whole world to see. Brilliant interview with both Barbara and Harvey.

Ok... your comment struck me as an opening to a discussion. Those of us who are older (and i will admit, i am 58) grew up when THIS was "normal". We were raised in the era and by parents/older relatives who were disgusted by homosexuality or who masked their curiosity with jokes and whispers. We, the children of that generation, were more progressive.. and though we weren't nearly as (stupidly) prejudice, it still was not the normal everyday occurrence to discuss homosexuality or to see it proudly represented. As WE became the adults, we accepted the issue as more of a possibility, but still not a regular occurrence. Some of us accepted everyone as they were and others fell back to their parents way of thinking. Though I see myself as very liberally-minded and accepting of others, my kids' generation sees me as more bottled up. Your kids or the next generation will find you and your views positively backwards compared to themselves. BUT the important point is... it's all progression in the RIGHT direction. Though it's slower moving than it should be, love is winning folks over.

Those jackasses will find a reason to hate Barbara so don’t worry about them

Yeah, I didn’t even know about this. I do like Harvey’s answers and Barbara giving this interview. I don’t think she’s the best journalist or interviewer over the years and sometimes asks dumb questions. But she did interview amazing interesting people who others ignored.

Same

age 7

3

Age 12