Michael Kearns has died at the age of 76. One of Hollywood's first openly gay actors, he appeared in everything from movies to soap operas. Then, in 1991, he revealed on national television that he was HIV positive.
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Kearns' death was reported in the Los Angeles Blade and in PEOPLE. Roland Palencia, a filmmaker and professor, shared on social media that the actor had recently visited the emergency room several times. He died on Monday, Oct. 5. A cause of death has not been revealed.
Michael Kearns Took Risks on and off the Screen
Kearns was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on Jan. 8, 1950. He found his passion at 8, when he was cast in a school play.
"Suddenly I realized I could entertain," he said. "I have found it."
Kearns graduated from Chicago's Goodman School of Drama in 1972. He made his Broadway debut two years later in the comedy Tubstrip, a play set in a steam bath. He also appeared in an episode of The Waltons.
It was also in the 1970s when Kearns came out as gay. It happened during a time when an actor revealing their sexuality could jeopardize their career.
Despite this, the actor was frequently spotted on the small screen in the 1980s and 1990s. He appeared on Cheers, Beverly Hills 90210, Murder, She Wrote, Days of Our Lives, and Knots Landing. He also starred in the 1984 film Body Double.
Kearns Took Another Risk in the 1990s
In 1991, Kearns made headlines again when he shared that he was HIV-positive, several days after the death of Brad Davis. The Midnight Express actor had hidden his AIDS diagnosis for years out of fear it would ruin his career.
"I'm doing this for all people with HIV," said Kearns. "HIV is nothing to be ashamed of. For me to remain silent indicates shame or fear on some level... I felt that not one more HIV-infected actor or anyone else should die in shame. Taking my cue from Brad Davis, I couldn't remain silent."
A year later, he married Philip Juwig, who died later that year.
While Kearns was a welcome presence on the small screen, his true passion was theater, which he used to confront homophobia.
In 1986, a Los Angeles radio station aired excerpts from Robert Chesley's Jerker, which Kearns directed. The play revolves around two gay men whose relationship develops over the phone. After someone filed a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission, the agency warned the station it could lose its license.
"If this had been a man and a woman having this conversation... the issues would not have been the same," Kearns said in 1996.
Kearns was also planning to take part in Celebration Theatre's Circa: Queer Histories Festival on National Coming Out Day, Oct. 11. He is survived by his daughter, Katherine, whom he adopted in 1995.
