Sal Mineo

Salvatore Mineo Jr., was a talented and handsome actor from the Golden Age of Hollywood.  He shared the big screen with the likes of James Dean and Tim Curtis. Known as the Switchblade Kid for his typecasting as a rebellious youth he was a heartthrob that stole the hearts of many (“Bio/Filmography”).

     Sal’s parents immigrated from Sicily to the U.S. and he was born in New York on January 10th, 1939.  From a young age he showed talent in performance arts starting with his enrollment in a dance school before the age of 10. 

 

     “If I'd understood back then that a guy could be in love with another one, it would have happened. But I didn't come to that realization for a few more years and then it was too late for Jimmy and me.” –Sal Mineo

     In my search for gay actors that I could safely look up to I found that the farther back in time I go the more touching and interesting the stories are.  It can often be heartbreaking the stories of such celebrities.  Despite the controversies of the time Sal lived through the time of the gay rights movement in New York, and by the 70s he was said to be dating men exclusively.