OMG! Dumbledore is GAY?!?

[LadyZod]

Am I the only one that thinks she might just be having a bit of fun? Perhaps she's been asked so many questions over the years, that she finally said to herself, you know what? Next dumb question gets an equally dumb answer.

The books series is over correct? And the fanboy question was what? Does Dumbledore ever find true love?
What kind of useless question is that? She could just say yes, and have to follow it up by making more stuff up (the point of ending the series: not having to make more stuff up about her characters). She could have said no, and you know the fanboys would demand more information, so she'd have to make more stuff up. Heck, if I'd been asked a question like that, I might have answered with something as equally as shocking... to stop the questioning.

Or maybe she was just tired of being asked the same question over and over and just said, you know what? Stop it. Stop with the Does Dumbledore hook up with anyone crap... he's , uh, GAY, ya that's it, gay. Now stop with the asking.

[noelani72]

I liked it better when story book characters were Asexual..Why does sexual preference , straight or gay, even have to be involved in books for kids.

Exactly what I thought. When I heard the news, I thought...ohhh big deal...why bring it up? Prof. Snape hasn't had a love interest in any of the films...should we read between the lines and conjure up a theory or two.

What is it John Stossel says..."Gimmie a Break".

[Dave Mc]

I liked it better when story book characters were Asexual..Why does sexual preference , straight or gay, even have to be involved in books for kids.

Exactly. Whether he's this or that is totally irrelevant to the story and is not part of the plot in anyway.

As Anthony stated, The books are written, the interpretations are now for the readers. Any character in any book who's preferences are not defined could be either way in the mind of the author. But once the book is written, and no definitions are present, the author can state what she had in mind, but that doesn't make it fact. Fact is what is in print, and only what is in print. She may have thought about his preference, but she didn't actually write it, therefore, there is none.

[ABMAC]

Perhaps even gay kids might like someone to look up to. Did you guys ever think about? I know I would have treasured a few role models when I was a kid.

Dumbledore was already a character worthy of respect before this announcement, right? It shouldn't change anything, but Rowling knows that people will rethink the character now, this time filtered through their prejudices and phobias. For some, it'll change their level of acceptance of gay characters, whether positively or negatively. It's sensationalism at its worst because it will do as much harm as good. I'm sure it will sell more copies of the books.

I understand your point about positive role models, but Dumbledore isn't sexually active in any of the books, so the question of his sexual orientation seems to be entirely moot at this point. If you can't tell he's gay when you read the books, what's the point of making this announcement now, other than, as Russ said, to keep Rowling in the spotlight? When the buzz over this dies down, will she announce that Harry Potter hates muslims, or that Hermione agrees with Bush's foreign policy?

[The Bat]

Perhaps even gay kids might like someone to look up to. Did you guys ever think about? I know I would have treasured a few role models when I was a kid.

Hey....You had David Bowie!

[SlipperyLilSuckers]

I liked it better when story book characters were Asexual..Why does sexual preference , straight or gay, even have to be involved in books for kids.

Perhaps even gay kids might like someone to look up to. Did you guys ever think about? I know I would have treasured a few role models when I was a kid.

[Daremo]

I was more shocked at the fact this made front page news on CNN.com.

[Johnny]

You guys are missing the really important issue for him and for all of us for that matter.

Boxers or briefs?

[jemboy2004]

I agree with Abmac on this one. Since it wasn't in the book it really doesn't matter.

Oh well must be a day without any Britney, Paris or Lindsey Drama to report on.

[RG]

I liked it better when story book characters were Asexual..Why does sexual preference , straight or gay, even have to be involved in books for kids.

to me the potter books and movies are still great . hi sexual preference shouldn't and do not matter to me.

Both of you hit the nail on the head of how I feel about the whole thing.

--
Why I said I felt like it was a cheap shot from her, is because I see it as a way to keep talk about her books going. Yes I know the books sell good on their own, but all the hype is gone over book 7 so to me it's just a way for her to keep herself in the spot light ... now she'll have a whole new batch of people wanting to do interviews ... and of course I'm sure Jay Leno will make some homophobic Harry Potter wise cracks for the next week or two

[txteach]

I think he wears a size 11 nike high top and his favorite cheese is munster.

[ABMAC]

Fictional characters don't exist outside the context of the stories. If Rowling thought it was important for the character to be gay, she should have said so in the books. Otherwise, the information is no more relevant than his shoe size or his favourite type of cheese.

[batmanmc]

to me the potter books and movies are still great . hi sexual preference shouldn't and do not matter to me.

[Count Creepyhead]

I liked it better when story book characters were Asexual..Why does sexual preference , straight or gay, even have to be involved in books for kids.

[andawaymego]

to me it almost seems like a cheap way for Rowlings to create controversy over her books. So what if he's gay, it doesn't add or take away from the story, so what's the real point of this outing????

-Russ

There's nothing cheap about it. She doesn't need to do anything to sell her books, films or ANYTHING. I wholeheartedly believe this is how she sincerely feels.