Was Andrew Cunanan A Closeted Heterosexual?

Having played chess in Greenwich Village in my teens, my “gaydar” is pretty well-attuned. Most gays “ping” in some way or another, often very sutbly; Andrew Cunanan, who murdered that Versuvius designer guy, is not one of them. My new theory on his killing spree is that he was about to be outed to the fashion community as a heterosexual, something with which I doubt any true fashion-spitter would disagree. Cunanan’s pinging is much more towards the gay4pay end of the spectrum; his murderous conduct was definitely more consistent with heterosexual than homosexual behavior.

For this year’s Straight Pride Week, and to bravely tell the tale of when I first realized I was heterosexual, I will share. It was 1978, at an all-boys summer camp. Mini-mancrushes on the cool campers were social, not sexual. Instead, my revelation would come in the mail, in the form of the weekly Sports Illustrated that would canonize all I was missing at my “real camp,” one with cabins, not dorms, and a television for viewing only on rainy days, or for special events. Unlike most covers of this magazine, this one had Christie Brinkley in a bikini; the legendary “swimsuit issue.” This was back in the day when such pictures were not so easy to come by, as there was no internet.

All straight men should definitely out themselves, and not fear the backlash, even from the fashion industry. This is a big enough planet, with enough room, and money, for everyone.