George Hamilton in his dual role as Don Diego de la Vega (aka: Zorro) and his gay twin brother Ramón de la Vega (aka: Bunny Wigglesworth, aka: also Zorro) in the 20th Century Fox/Peter Medak swashbuckling comedy Zorro, The Gay Blade, 1981. A high camp but ultimately very positive portrayal of an lgbtq+ character and the unconditional bonds of family and brotherly love, George's fabulously flamboyant "Bunny" swoops in and saves the day when Zorro suffers an injury, stealing from the rich to give to the poor, uniting Zorro with his true love (played by Lauren Hutton), and rescuing Zorro from a firing squad before helping overthrow the evil dictator tyrannizing "old-timey" Southern California. It's very much worth noting that Hamilton's older half-brother Bill was gay and George adored him, often stating that Bill was smarter, better looking and more sophisticated than he was. When George moved to Hollywood with his mother and Bill in the late-1950s and started to find success as an actor, he financially supported them both and set them up in a mansion so they could live out their dreams in the high style they aspired to. Bill later worked as an interior decorator for Eva Gabor Interiors in both Palm Springs and Los Angeles before he became ill and passed away at the age of 51 in 1982 (George took care of Bill and paid for his medical care at the end). Decades later, George starred in a touring stage version of the lgbtq+ themed musical La Cage aux Folles which he performed in both the U.S. and Canada in 2012. Discussing his role as a gay man in the play with the Tampa Bay Times, Hamilton stated: "My brother Bill never felt accepted. Even though my mother loved him, he never felt like she accepted him. I accepted him because I grew up with him. I think about him a lot when I'm playing Georges." Before Bill died, George asked him if there was anything he'd do differently if he could live his life over again. "And Bill said, 'I would love more.' And that's what La Cage is all about. It's not about gay or straight. It's about family, about living your life and finding love, and about standing up for yourself for who you are." In an interview with The Toronto Star about the play, George said: "When this show first came out in 1983, it was a kind of anthem for the gay movement. I didn't want to do anything that would be disrespectful or a travesty of that. My half-brother was gay and at a period in time when it was very difficult for him. It was all closeted in America back then and it was a great dark secret. I'm doing this show for him." George was also close friends (and romantic partners for a time) with lgbtq+ ally, gay icon and AIDS activist Elizabeth Taylor, often accompanying her to fundraising events for HIV/AIDS in the 1980s.
