April 1st

04-01-1973   Rachel Maddow – Born in Castro Valley, California. She is the first openly gay American to win a Rhodes scholarship. An American television host, political commentator, and author, Maddow is the first openly gay anchor to host a major prime-time news program in the United States. She holds a doctorate in politics from Oxford University. Asked about her political views by the Valley Advocate, Maddow replied, “I’m undoubtedly a liberal, which means that I’m in almost total agreement with the Eisenhower-era Republican party platform.” Maddow lives in Manhattan and western Massachusetts with her partner, artist Susan Mikula. 

04-01-1883 – 12-07-1946 Laurette Taylor – Born in New York City, New York. She was an American stage and silent film actress. Taylor had an affair with Eva Le Gallienne. Married twice, her second marriage was to British playwright J. Hartley Manners, who wrote the play Peg o’ My Heart for her. It was a major and personal triumph for Taylor, who toured extensively throughout the country. Based upon the popular novel by Mary O’Hara, the play’s success inspired a 1922 film version starring Taylor and directed by King Vidor.

04-01-1900 – 10-17-1984 Alberta Hunter – Born in Memphis, Tennessee. She was an internationally known Aftican-American jazz singer and songwriter. Her career spanned from the early 1920s to the late 1950s. With the death of her mother in 1957, she stopped performing and became a nurse. She worked for 20 years at Roosevelt Island’s Goldwater Memorial Hospital. When she was forced to retire, she decided to sing again and had a successful comeback up until her death in 1984. Hunter was a lesbian, although she kept her sexuality relatively private. She was involved with Lottie Tyler for many years, the relationship ending upon the death of Tyler.

04-01-1942 Samuel Delany – Born in New York City, New York. He is a gay African-American author, professor, and literary critic. His work includes fiction, especially science fiction, memoir, criticism, and essays on sexuality and society. He has won four Nebula awards and two Hugo awards over the course of his career. In 2002, he was inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame. Delany has identified as a gay man since adolescence, though he was married to poet Marilyn Hacker (who was aware of Delany’s orientation and has identified as a lesbian since their divorce in 1980) has led some to classify him as bisexual.

04-01-1962   Phillip Schofield – Born in Oldham, Lancashire, England. He is an English television presenter who works for ITV. He gained national attention working for the BBC. In 1993, he married his long-time partner Stephanie Lowe, the couple have two daughters. On February 7, 2020, Schofield came out as gay. In an interview on This Morning, he stated that “with the help and support of my wife and daughters, I have been coming to terms with the fact that I am gay.”

04-01-1967 Joe FitzPatrick – Born in Dundee, United Kingdom. He is a politician and a National Party Member of the Scottish Parliament for Dundee City West. Since 2007, he has represented the constituency at the Scottish Parliament. He is also the Scottish Government Minister for Parliamentary Business since September 2012. FitzPatrick is one of five out LGBT MSPs, along with Marco Biagi, Ruth Davidson, Kevin Stewart, and Patrick Harvie.

04-01-1986   Ireen Wüst – Born in Goirie, Netherlands. She is a Dutch long-track all-around speed skater. At the age of 19, she won the gold medal in the 2006 Winter Olympic Games 3000-meter event. She is the youngest Dutch Olympic champion in Winter Games history. At the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, she won the 1500-meter event. In the 2014 Winter Games, she won 2 gold and 3 silver medals. She is the most successful athlete of the Netherlands at the Winter Olympics. In 2014 she was elected by Reuters as the Sportswomen of the World. Wüst has won six gold medals, five silver, and on bronze, making her the most decorated Olympic speedskater in history. Since she is out as bisexual, she is also the most decorated out LGBTQ Olympian. She and skater Letitia de Jong have been together since 2017 and Wüst said she plans to marry her this summer — their wedding has been postponed several times because of the pandemic.