"Steve Wright" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes:
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Saturday April 11 8:10 AM EDT
Singer George Michael Says He's Gay
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Pop star George Michael said he was not ashamed to
admit he is gay but reproached himself for the actions that led to his
arrest this week on lewd-conduct charges.
"I want people to know I haven't been exposed as a gay man. I don't feel any
shame. I feel stupid and reckless and weak for having allowed my sexuality
to be exposed this way," Michael told CNN Friday in his first public
comments since his arrest in a public toilet in Los Angeles Tuesday.
The 34-year-old singer, who has long drawn a discreet veil over his private
life, broke his silence because he said he wanted to let his fans know he is
"OK."
Michael's arrest made international headlines after Beverly Hills police
announced Wednesday he had been apprehended by undercover officers after
complaints from neighbors that lewd acts were being performed in public
toilets.
Without discussing the specifics of his arrest or the act he allegedly
engaged in, Michael said it was not the first time he had been "reckless" in
a similar way.
"I put myself in an extremely stupid position, I won't deny that. I won't
even say it was the first time it ever happened. I can only apologize," he
said.
Michael, whose real name is Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou, said he had
intentionally kept his sexuality ambiguous, in part for professional
reasons, because a "borderline" performer can communicate with both men and
women.
"My sexuality was not cut and dry," he said, adding that he did not have a
gay relationship until he was 27.
He said by the time he stopped having relationships with women 10 years ago,
he was so "indignant" about previous press coverage he kept his sexuality to
himself.
"I have no problem with people knowing I'm in a relationship with a man.
I've not been in a relationship with a woman for nearly 10 years," he said.
He said the songs he wrote in the first half of his career were about women,
"but the songs I've written since have been fairly obviously about men."
Formerly half of the pop duo Wham!, Michael has been a solo artist since
1987 and has won two Grammys.
He is scheduled for arraignment in Beverly Hills Municipal Court on May 5.
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Lifes a beach and I'm on it, Jah Wobble.
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