Groovy Guy: Tab Hunter

Today is actor Tab Hunter's 77th birthday, and if you haven't read his 2005 autobiography, Tab Hunter Confidential: The Making of a Movie Star, you should. It's one of the best bios I've ever read, and he discusses his homosexuality quite candidly. The gorgeous man has had a fascinating career, having played opposite such lovely ladies as Gwen Verdon, Natalie Wood and Divine. So I highly recommend that you check out his book or rent one of his many films (John Waters' Polyester is my personal favorite) to become better acquainted with this groovy guy.

Here are 10 Groovy Facts about Tab Hunter:

1) He was born Arthur Andrew Kelm on July 11, 1931, in New York City.

2) As a teenager, he was a competitive figure skater.

3) When he was signed to a contract at Warner Bros., his first agent, Henry Wilson, changed his name to Tab Hunter (Wilson also gave actor Roy Fitzgerald a new name--Rock Hudson).

4) Hunter was nicknamed "The Sigh Guy" by the Hollywood studio system.

5) He had a 1957 hit record with the song, "Young Love", which was #1 on the charts for six weeks.

6) Hunter's failure to win the role of Tony in the film adaptation of West Side Story prompted him to agree to star in a weekly television sitcom in 1960. However, prior to his show's debut, he was arrested for allegedly beating his dog Fritz. His 11-day trial began a month after The Tab Hunter Show debuted on NBC on Sunday nights (opposite Ed Sullivan). It was proved that the neighbor who initiated the charges had done so because the actor declined her repeated invitations to dinner. He was acquitted, but his low-rated TV series was canceled after one season.

7) He starred on Broadway in 1964 with Tallulah Bankhead and Marian Seldes in Tennessee Williams' The Milk Train Doesn't Stop Here Anymore, which closed after only two previews and five performances.

8) In 1977, he replaced actor Philip Bruns on TV's Forever Fernwood (a Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman spin-off) as Mary's father, George Shumway, who looked like Tab Hunter after he fell into a chemical vat and had plastic surgery.

9) His career was revived in the 1980s, when he starred as Todd Tomorrow in Polyester (1981), Mr. Stuart in Grease 2 (1982), and Abel Wood in Lust in the Dust (1985).

10) Hunter had long-term relationships with actor Anthony Perkins and champion figure skater Ronnie Robertson before settling down in 1982 with his partner, Allan Glaser.