Lovers That Celebs Kept Secret Until Their Deaths

The following article contains references to homophobia, racism, and substance misuse.

"My secret love's no secret anymore." So sang Doris Day in the classic 1953 film "Calamity Jane." Forbidden love has long formed the basis of many a work of fiction. From the star-crossed lovers of Shakespeare to, well, Jim and Pam in "The Office," secret love is something that still rouses interest: why are two adults who want to be together forbidden from doing so? And as is often the case, life ends up imitating art. As such, there have been numerous celebs throughout history who have kept their relationships a secret.

Gossip sites are presently chock full of celeb makeups and breakups, with A-list couples' every move being documented by the paps, or indeed by the stars themselves on social media. Although we've grown accustomed to, say, Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker packing on the borderline NSFW PDA on the 'gram, or Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly openly drinking each other's blood, showbiz wasn't always like this. There once was a time when stars had to keep quiet about their relationships, either due to potentially bad publicity or societal taboos.

Historically, certain kinds of love have been suppressed, leading to people dating in secret and devising strategic ways of keeping their relationships out of the public eye. In other cases, stars have hidden their lovers due to engaging in extramarital affairs. Let's take a deep dive into lovers that celebs kept secret until their deaths.

Farrah Fawcett was synonymous with the name Ryan O'Neal, her on-again-off-again partner of 30 years. But following Fawcett's untimely death in 2009, another man came forward to allege that he had been long term lovers with the "Charlie's Angels" star.

Speaking to the Daily Mail, Greg Lott claimed that he was Fawcett's boyfriend, having first met her when they were studying at the University of Texas; they apparently reunited in 1998 and remained in a relationship until her death. "We were blind, crazy, in love," he said. "Farrah was my best friend ... We fell in love with each other all those years ago and we never really stopped loving each other." Moreover, Lott accused his love rival of conducting a showmance with Fawcett, whereas he was supposedly the true love of her life. He also alleged that O'Neal prevented him from seeing Fawcett when he arrived at her home shortly before she died. "I never got to say goodbye to Farrah," he said. "Ryan shut me out of her life." Although O'Neal disputed Lott's claims, his son, Griffin, praised Lott for giving Fawcett the love she deserved.

Subsequently, in 2013, Lott and O'Neal became embroiled in a bitter legal dispute, at the heart of which was a $30 million Andy Warhol painting of Fawcett, per ABC News. O'Neal contested his partner's trust, which left the painting to the University of Texas. Meanwhile, Lott sought to honor the trust, accusing O'Neal of wanting to keep the painting to himself.

Just two months before his untimely death, Heath Ledger was linked to Australian model Gemma Ward, per the Mumbai Mirror. However, Ledger hid another lover from the public, for reasons that remain a mystery to this day. When the "Dark Knight" star died in 2008 at just 28, it was revealed that he had been lovers with Mary-Kate Olsen since 2006. "Mary-Kate and Heath were casually dating for three months before Heath's death," an insider told People. "They were hooking up, but neither were particularly interested in making it exclusive." Sources also noted that the pair shared an interest in partying. Were it not for the suspicious circumstances surrounding the Aussie actor's demise, his relationship with Olsen may very well have never been made public knowledge.

When he was found unconscious in his New York apartment, Ledger's masseuse, Diana Wolozin, decided to call Olsen, who was on speed dial, rather than 911. Olsen, who was in Los Angeles at the time, advised Wolozin that she would get some security contacts she had in New York to come to the apartment. Some time later, 911 was called, though Ledger had sadly already died.

Subsequently, suspicion arose as to Olsen's possible role in Ledger's fatal overdose, with many speculating that she had supplied him with the drugs that killed him, per The Guardian. Olsen has always denied that she was Ledger's drug dealer, though she also sought immunity before cooperating with police, fueling further conspiracy theories.

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

The superhunk of the golden age of Hollywood, Gregory Peck was as talented as he was handsome. A woke bae before the term entered the cultural lexicon, he supported numerous progressive causes, most notably civil rights, per ABC News. Therefore, he certainly didn't seem the type to kiss and tell, particularly in the wake of a lover's death.

But when his "Spellbound" co-star Ingrid Bergman's died in 1982, it didn't take long for Peck to spill the tea. Subsequently, in 1987, he revealed to People that they had been lovers. "All I can say is I had a real love for her, and I think that's where I ought to stop," he said. "Except to say she was like a lovely Swedish rose. I was young. She was young. We were involved for weeks in close and intense work." Ever the gent, he did not give the deets on their dalliance when pressed on the matter.

When the pair met on the set of "Spellbound" in 1945, Peck was married to his first wife, Greta Kukkonen, whom he didn't divorce until a decade later, per The Sydney Morning Herald. As noted in the book "Gregory Peck," the actor found himself falling in love with Bergman, something which he felt he had no control over. "I don't think there's any way to avoid it, for she was incredibly beautiful, and a very sweet person," he remarked.

As the creator of "Star Trek," Gene Roddenberry was a pioneer of small screen sci-fi. But as with so many powerful men in the entertainment industry, he allegedly took advantage of young women who starred in his show.

In 1994, three years after Roddenberry died, "Star Trek" star Nichelle Nichols, who played the iconic Uhura, penned her memoir, "Beyond Uhura." In it, she details her affair with the late series creator, who was married at the time, per Daily Record. But in addition to cheating on his wife with Nichols, Roddenberry was also cheating on his lover with fellow "Star Trek" star Majel Barrett, whom he would go on to marry in 1969. "He had a voracious appetite," Nichols remarked, per the Orlando Sentinel.

Accordingly, Roddenberry's problematic behavior has led to accusations that he was a misogynist who hid behind a veneer of ostensible progressiveness (notably, he cast Black and Asian actors in major roles at a time when diversity casting was unheard of). "Gene Roddenberry was a sexist, manipulative person who disregarded women," said Ande Richardson, an assistant for original "Star Trek" writer and showrunner Gene L. Coon, per National Review. "He would have women walking from Bill Theiss' fitting rooms through to his office in the skimpiest outfits so he could perv them." Although these sordid revelations about Roddenberry's private life have led to intense criticism, Nichols still looks back on the pair's relationship with affection. "The man was incredible," she later told CherryLosAngeles.

Famed for his roles in critically acclaimed films such as "Women in Love" and "Whistle Down the Wind," British thespian Alan Bates enjoyed an illustrious career on both stage and screen. However, his career was cut short when he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in February 2003. Bates, who was bisexual, had a number of secret lovers throughout his life, including the figure skater John Curry and "Chariots of Fire" star Ian Charleson, per The Telegraph.

In the final year of his life, he was in a relationship with actor Joanna Pettet, per the Evening Standard. As with many of his lovers, Bates chose to keep the pair's relationship a secret. The romantic nature of the relationship was only made public following Bates' death, when he bequeathed Pettet £95,000 (around $117k). "It was a very touching gesture because he had done everything while he was in hospital to make sure I would be looked after following his death," Pettet said.

As Bates was dying, he was nursed by Pettet, who was distraught that the pair's rekindled romance had been blighted by illness. "It was horrible," she recalled. "We had all these plans and I could just see it crumble away. But he was so brave. We never talked about him dying." The actor's son, Ben, also praised Pettet for giving his father some much needed solace during his final days. Bates died just ten months after his diagnosis, aged 69.

Following his tragic death at the age of 40, Paul Walker has been revered by his legions of fans. But the star hid a secret – one that's incongruous with his canonized posthumous public image. At the time of Walker's death in 2013, his girlfriend was 23-year-old Jasmine Pilchard-Gosnell, with whom he had been living. But the couple had met seven years earlier — when Walker was 33 and Pilchard-Gosnell was just 16, per In Touch Weekly. 

Walker kept the relationship a secret, most likely due to the potential backlash he would have faced for dating a young girl. "You have to understand that she is still terribly wounded by Paul's death and will be for a long time," her father, Casey, who is just seven years older than Walker, told the Daily Mail.

Accordingly, the secret romance has called the "Fast and Furious" star's reputation into question. For instance, the age of consent in California is 18, so Pilchard-Gosnell was legally a child when she met her famous boyfriend. Car mag Jalopnik criticized the mainstream media for glossing over Walker's apparent penchant for teenage girls (he had allegedly dated another teen, Aubrianna Atwell, when she, too, was underage). As the outlet highlights, the 2018 documentary "I Am Paul Walker" features endless heartfelt eulogies to the late star, yet there is no mention of Pilchard-Gosnell whatsoever, despite her being the actor's long term partner at the time of his death.

If you or someone you know may be the victim of child abuse, please contact the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child (1-800-422-4453) or contact their live chat services.

Possibly one of the most surprising romantic pairings, influential funnyman Richard Pryor and Hollywood rabble rouser Marlon Brando were allegedly lovers. Rumors of a dalliance between the two were instigated by Quincy Jones in 2018, over a decade after both men had died. In an interview with Vulture, Jones spilled the tea on Brando's alleged sexcapades, insinuating that it would be easier to list whom the Oscar-winner hadn't slept with. "He was the most charming motherf****r you ever met," Jones said. "He'd f*** anything. Anything! He'd f*** a mailbox. James Baldwin. Richard Pryor. Marvin Gaye." 

These claims were corroborated by Pryor's widow, Jennifer, who told TMZ that her husband was proudly bisexual. "It was the '70s! ... If you did enough cocaine, you'd f*** a radiator and send it flowers in the morning," she remarked. It should be noted that same sex love was still considered taboo in the 1970s, particularly with mixed-race couples, which helps to explain why Pryor and Brando kept their reported rendezvous a secret; indeed, the American Psychiatric Association regarded same sex relationships as symptomatic of mental illness up to 1973, per The New York Times.

Eyebrow-raising as the alleged affair may seem, the two men weren't all that incompatible. For instance, Brando was renowned for his support for civil rights, famously attending the March on Washington in 1963, per Variety. Meanwhile, Pryor was a staunch and outspoken critic of racism in the United States, as Jacobin notes.

Aviation pioneer Charles Lindbergh remains a highly controversial figure. A prominent Nazi sympathizer, he showed support for Hitler during WWII, believing in the eugenicist view of preserving so-called European blood. For a man as contentious as Lindbergh, it's hardly surprising, then, that his family life was riddled with scandal.

In a plot straight out of a soap opera, Lindbergh had not one, and not two, but three secret lovers (Brigitte Hesshaimer, her sister Marietta Hesshaimer, and the mononymous Valeska), the identities of whom he kept with him to the grave. Days before he died, he asked his lovers to never reveal the truth. Unsurprisingly given his Nazi ties, it was in post-war Germany that he embarked on trysts with the three women.

In fact, not only did he have extramarital lovers, but he fathered seven children with them. It wasn't until 2003, 29 years after the aviator's death, that his dark secret was revealed. His children with Brigitte — Dyrk, Astrid, and David — came forward with allegations that the aviator was their father. A DNA test proved that these claims are true. ”They knew all along he was their father because they spent time with him growing up. But it's good to have an iron-clad confirmation," the family's representative, Anton Schwenk, told The New York Times. With regards to the aforementioned visits, Lindbergh was able to conceal his identity from his kids by claiming he was merely a friend of their mother, known as ”Mr. Careu Kent.”

Artist Thomas Kinkade was famed for his pastoral paintings that garnered widespread appeal across middle America. In 2012, the 54-year-old died of an overdose of drugs and alcohol. At the time of his death, he was believed to have still been married to his wife of 30 years, Nanette. However, it was soon revealed that he actually had a secret lover, Amy Pinto-Walsh, with whom he had been living and who found the artist dead. "I am his live-in girlfriend. I've been with him 18 months. My name is Amy Pinto and him and his wife have been separated," Pinto-Walsh said in a bombshell statement following Kincade's demise.

Subsequently, Nanette and Pinto-Walsh became embroiled in a bitter dispute over the latter's alleged threats to disclose personal and business information about her late lover, the likes of which would supposedly ruin his reputation.

Moreover, Pinto-Walsh refused to move out of the artist's home and began battling with his wife over his $100 million estate, claiming that Kinkade left her millions in a barely legible handwritten will. "She's already received a substantial, substantial sum of money that arose from her relationship with Thomas Kinkade," reasoned Nanette's lawyer, Daniel Casas, per The Mercury News. But Pinto-Walsh insisted that she was the love of Kinkade's life, claiming that the couple had been planning to tie the knot in the lead-up to his death. The two women eventually settled out of court, the details of which remain private.

If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA's National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).

Former New York mayor Ed Koch refused to publicly discuss his sexuality throughout his lifetime. But this discretion would become the source of much contention among members of the LGBTQ community.

His reported secret lover was healthcare consultant Richard W. Nathan, whom he began dating in the '70s, per a New York Times investigation. When asked whether he and Nathan were lovers, Koch vociferously denied it. However, playwright and LGBTQ activist Larry Kramer discovered the pair's relationship after a chat with Nathan. Subsequently, he attempted to out Koch as he was dissatisfied with the mayor's response to the AIDS crisis (critics contend that Koch adopted an apathetic attitude towards AIDS, which killed tens of thousands of New Yorkers by 1987). This made Koch, who was terrified of the couple's relationship being made public, go on the defensive. "I couldn't understand why Koch was so upset," his colleague George Arzt said of Koch's scheduled speech at an AIDS forum in 1987. "He was scared that Larry Kramer would be in the audience and yell something out. I said, 'So what?'"

After his appearance at the forum, he had a mild stroke, apparently exacerbated by his fear of being outed, and later went on to explicitly purport that he was in fact straight, a façade he maintained until his death in 2013. Due to his apparent internalized homophobia and disastrous response to the AIDS epidemic, critics argue that Koch left behind a devastating legacy for the LGBTQ community.