Danny Kaye is one of the most recognized names in the entertainment industry. The late great actor, singer, comedian and whatever has appeared in a plethora of blockbuster movies. He blessed his presence in great movies like The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Wonder Man and many more. Danny Kaye was also popular for his charity work, which is why he was one of the most loved actors in the 1950s. However, there is a mystery that revolves around this man’s sexuality. He used to be rumored to have had a ten-year affair with Laurence Olivier. So, is this rumor true? Was Danny Kaye gay? Read below to check all the details.
Career details of Danny Kaye
Danny Kaye made his first breakthrough in 1937 when he appeared in a series of two-reel comedies for Educational Pictures. After this, however, he had to wait a few years to make his feature film debut. His first feature film appearance came in 1944 in a comedy film titled ‘Up in Arms’. Danny Kaye never returned after this, throwing back-to-back hits. The following year, he also started his own radio show called “The Danny Kaye Show”.
This was just the beginning of Danny Kaye’s glorious career. He quickly became a well-known personality for his appearances in movies like The Inspector General, On the Riviera, The Five Pennies, The Court Jester and many more.
Danny Kaye tied the knot with Sylvia Fine in 1940. Both grew up in Brooklyn, and that too just a few blocks away. However, they did not meet until 1939. The couple finally gave birth to a daughter named Dena in December 1946. Danny Kaye breathed his last on March 3, 1987, when he died of a heart attack.
Did Danny Kaye and Laurence Olivier have an affair?
Two different biographers have claimed that Danny Kaye had an affair with Laurence Olivier. The rumors were very strong that Danny Kaye was gay or bisexual. The same is also mentioned in Vivien Leigh’s biography. Leigh was the wife of Laurence Olivier and the two were still married when she found out about Danny and Laurence’s alleged affair. She had a breakdown after knowing and eventually divorced Laurence.
Martin Gottfried, the author of Danny Kaye’s biography “Nobody’s Fool: The Lives of Danny Kaye” also stated that Danny was a very private person. He wrote that Danny was an indefinable person onstage, but has an extremely private life offstage. Gottfried never found any evidence for the claim that Danny Kaye was secretly gay.
The situation was also further clarified in Laurence Olivier’s biography. Donald Spoto wrote that Danny Kaye had some heartbreaking affairs, but none of them with Laurence Olivier. So the question still remains, “Was Danny Kaye gay?”
Was Danny Kaye gay?
Many people, including Laurence Olivier’s wife, have accused his husband and Danny Kaye of having a secret affair. However, no one has been able to find any evidence related to their affair so far. So when it comes to the question, “Was Danny Kaye gay?” We cannot say for sure whether he was gay or bisexual. But if we are to believe the rumors and Vivien Leigh’s biography, then Danny Kaye was definitely gay or homosexual.
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