January 1st

01-01-1895 – 05-02-1972 J. Edgar Hoover – Born in Washington, D.C. He was the first Director of the Federal Bureau Of Investigation (FBI) of the U.S. Hoover built the FBI into a larger crime-fighting agency and adding police technology, such as a centralized fingerprint file and forensic laboratories. Since the 1940s, rumors circulated that Hoover was homosexual. It has been speculated that Clyde Tolson, who became an associate director of the FBI and was Hoover’s primary heir, may have been his lover. Hoover reportedly hunted down and threatened anyone who made insinuation about his sexuality. Actress and singer Ethel Merman, who was a friend of Hoover’s since 1938, said in a 1978 interview, “Some of my best friends are homosexual. Everybody knew about J. Edgar Hoover, but he was the best chief the FBI ever had.” Harry Hay, founder of the Mattachine Society, one of the first gay rights organization, said Hoover and Tolson sat in boxes owned and used exclusively by gay men at the Del Mar racetrack in California. The relationship between Hoover and Tolson cannot be denied. The American flag that draped Hoover’s casket was given to Tolson. Tolson is buried a few yards away from Hoover in the Congressional Cemetery. Hoover used the FBI to target LGBT people and ruined many lives.

01-01-1879 – 06-07-1970 E.M. Forster (Edward Morgan) – Born in Marylebone, United Kingdom. He was an English novelist, short story writer, essayist, and librettist. He is known best for his ironic and well-plotted novels examining class difference and hypocrisy in early 20th-century British society. His 1908 novel, A Room With a View, is his most optimistic work, while A Passage to India (1924) brought him his greatest success. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize for Literature in 16 different years. Forester was homosexual (open to his friends but not to the public) and a lifelong bachelor. He developed a long-term loving relationship with Bob Buckingham, a married policeman.

01-01-1898 – 08-07-1978   Valentine Penrose – Born in Mont-de-Marsan, Landes, France. She was a French surrealist poet, author, and collagist. In 1925 she married English artist, historian, and poet Roland Penrose. The marriage was never consummated. In 1937, they divorced but met again in London during WWII, after which she lived half her time with her ex-husband and his second wife. The arrangement continued for the rest of her life. In 1936 she made a visit to India with the poet and painter Alice Paalen. The women became close and their relationship is shown in their poetry from 1936 to about 1945. Because of the lesbian attributes in their work, it is believed that they had an affair. Penrose’s writing on lesbianism was always with the same lovers: Emily and Rubia. She saw herself as in the Sapphic tradition of Renée Vivien, Natalie Barney, and Charles Baudelaire.

01-01-1970 Magalen Hsu-Li – Born in Martinsville, Virginia. She is a Chinese-American music artist, painter, poet, and speaker. Her parents emigrated from China in the 1960’s. She attended Rhode Island School of Design. After graduating she discovered a passion for music over design. She studied jazz and classical music at Cornish School of the Arts. She founded ChickPop Records in 1997 as well as Femme Vitale, and The Seattle Women’s Music and Arts Coalition. Her second CD, Evolution with the song Monkey Girl won her the Gay and Lesbian American Music Award for “Best Song” in 1998. In 2006 she met and had a child with music artist Greane (Adam Dias). She identifies herself as bisexual.

01-01-1974 Thakoon Panichgul – Born in Thailand, his family moved to the United States when he was 11 years old. He grew up in Omaha, Nebraska. As a fashion writer, he developed an interest in designing. He attended Parsons School of Design from 2001 to 2003. In September 2004, Panichgul produced his first ready to wear collection and became recognized by fashion press, editors, stylists, and celebrities like Rachel Bilson, Demi Moore, Michelle Obama, and Sarah Jessica Parker.

01-01-1976   Dan Kloeffler – Born in Michigan, city unknown. He is an American television journalist. Since 2010, he has been an anchor of ABC News Now. He came out of the closet while on the air reporting the coming out of actor Zachary Quinto in October 2011. Kloeffler later wrote, “…for the same reason Zach decided to come out, I too, no longer want to hide this part of my life. There have been too many tragic endings and to many cases of bullying because of intolerance…as a journalist, I don’t want to be the story, but as a gay man I don’t want to stand silent if I can offer some inspiration or encouragement to kids who might be struggling with who they are.” Kloeffler added that he had tremendously supportive family and said he knew early on that he was gay.