Baywatch Hunk Comes Out

International News, By Tim D, 10th March, 2008

The man at the centre of many adolescent fantasies, former Baywatch hunk Jaason Simmons (no, that’s not a spelling mistake) has today come out of closet and publicly declared that his is gay.

The Tasmanian-born actor, who played Australian lifeguard Logan Fowler on Baywatch for three years in the mid 1990s [pictured front centre in the top photo], has ended years of speculation in the hope of raising awareness of African adoption.

Simmons has appeared in Australian New Idea magazine with his boyfriend of eight months, Irish actor John O’Callaghan, and his adopted six year-old Ugandon son [all pictured right in New Idea magazine] saying that they want to get married. The couple plan to wed in Canada as same-sex unions are not legally recognized in California where they both live.

Jaason, who first married a woman at 20, hit the big time at 24 with his regular role on Baywatch, alongside Pamela Anderson, David Hasslehoff and Yasmine Bleeth. Among Simmons’ first confidantes in revealing his sexuality was his Baywatch co-star Alexandra Paul, whose twin sister is gay, and to whom he was romantically linked.

After quitting the show and spending some time in a Buddhist monastery in Wales, doing theatre in London and acting in several independent films, fellow actor O’Callaghan proposed to Simmons a few months after they met. “People said ‘Isn’t it too quick?” says Jaason, “But it’s different when you’re 37 and you’ve gone through the mill and been kicked around and learnt stuff. If you both want the same thing and are on the same journey, and you’re together until you pass, what’s too fast? If you know, you know.”

When asked why they want to get married, Jaason says: “We’re doing it for our family and for my soon-to-be son. Although you don’t want to typecast yourself, you have to take responsibility and ownership and move humanity forward, out of bigotry. Our son needs to see we can stand in front of family and loved ones who are going to support our union through the good times and bad.”

Oh the irony that the man who has appeared on the cover of Playgirl Magazine [click “Show All Photos” on the right to view image] and set many female hearts aflutter actually bats for our team. Now all we need is for fellow Baywatcher David Charvet to come out and we can die happy.
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