Charles Nelson Reilly

Charles Nelson Reilly was an American actor, comedian, director, and acting teacher who won a Tony Award in 1962 for How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying and became a household name as a prominent panelist on Match Game (1973), where his flamboyant wit and barely concealed queerness made him a beloved figure to millions. While he never formally came out during his peak years — the era did not permit it — his queerness was understood and embraced by audiences. He discussed his homosexuality openly late in life, most fully in his acclaimed one-man stage show, filmed as The Life of Reilly (2006), which included frank discussion of his identity, his difficult childhood, and his long relationship with his partner Patrick Hughes. Reilly also directed extensively for theater and television and taught acting until near the end of his life.