It was a stunning revelation that almost made my eyes pop out of their sockets.
Imagine the revered bearded wizard and Headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, deeply in love with another wizard – a MALE wizard?
Yes, J. K. Rowling, author of the mega-selling Harry Potter fantasy series that ended last summer, has revealed that Dumbledore, one of the series’ main characters, was a gay.
Whew! I’m sure glad Rowling didn’t turn Harry and Ron Weasley into gays, too, or Hermione Granger into a lesbian. Otherwise, the titles of J. K. Rowling’s books would have been “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Make-up Kit,” “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Sex,” “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Love,” “Harry Potter and the Goblet in Pink,” “Harry Potter and the Half-Woman Prince,” and “Harry Potter and the Deadly Pinch.”
Appearing before a full house at Carnegie Hall on Friday, Rowling was asked by one young fan whether Dumbledore finds “true love.”
“Dumbledore is gay,” the author responded to gasps and applause.
She then explained that Dumbledore was smitten with rival Gellert Grindelwald, whom he defeated long ago in a battle between good and bad wizards. “Falling in love can blind us to an extent,” Rowling said of Dumbledore’s feelings, adding that Dumbledore was “horribly, terribly let down.”
Dumbledore’s love, she observed, was his “great tragedy.”
Potter readers on fan sites and elsewhere on the Internet have speculated on the sexuality of Dumbledore, noting that he has no close relationship with women and a mysterious, troubled past.
Rowling told the audience that while working on the planned sixth Potter film, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” she spotted a reference in the script to a girl who once was of interest to Dumbledore. A note was duly passed to director David Yates, revealing the truth about her character.
Rowling also said that she regarded her Potter books as a “prolonged argument for tolerance” and urged her fans to “question authority.”
Not everyone likes her work, Rowling said, referring to Christian groups that have claimed that her books promote witchcraft. Her news about Dumbledore, she said, will give them one more reason.
Well, at least Dumbledore was not a screaming faggot — although he could also belt out a thunderous roar.