Long before there was Nico Tortorella/Bethany Meyers as a couple with a Bi component (Nico defines himself as Bi) there were many other couples who due to Bi-erasure were seen as heteronormative but the truth they lived was anything but heterosexual. The couple I want to talk about today is Vincent Price and Coral Browne. While I did recall that Coral was unabashedly Bi (although often labeled as a lesbian) I was not really aware of Vincent’s sexuality until fairly recently.
Vincent’s daughter, Victoria Price, an out lesbian said in an interview with Boom.lgbt in 2015 that her father was definitely Bi and that his marriage to Coral was the real deal. Victoria indicated that while there were rumors that the marriage was a fraud used to cover the homosexuality of the two partners the rumors were definitely false. As she puts it, “It wasn’t a fraud. It was a totally sexual relationship but they were two people with very open minded approaches as to what life should look like. And that to me – people who lived this truth in all aspects of their lives – they should be heroes to every community.” I could not agree more, Victoria.
I will never forget during those dark days when Anita Bryant was doing her damnedest to make life for gay folks a living hell Vincent was asked for his view. He happened to be starring in a one man show about Oscar Wilde at the time. He was asked what he thought about Bryant and had the perfect response in television interviews saying Wilde had already written a play about Ms. Bryant: “A Woman of No Importance.” When we were looking for any positivity at all this was the ultimate witty and disparaging take on Bryant’s anti-gay theatrics.
Vincent wasn’t hiding, nor was Coral. Or if they were ‘hiding’ it was in plain sight. ; ) They had found the perfect partner and were enjoying life to the fullest. ❤
The Bi-Fi Signal 