List of LGBT Jews

While traditional Jewish views opposed homosexuality (and other non-normative sexual orientations and gender identities), more accepting attitudes have accompanied increased secularisation and social awareness (as well as a tendency to leftwing politics). These attitudes have had an effect on all the major denominations: gay rabbis are increasingly common, and same-sex marriages are sanctioned by both the Reform and Reconstructionist denominations (see: Jewish views of homosexuality). The following is a list of some prominent LGBT Jews.

Political figures

• Roberta Achtenberg, HUD assistant secretary
• Sheldon Andelson, University of California Regent
• Miriam Ben-Shalom, US sergeant, founder of AVER
• Roy Cohn, McCarthyist lawyer
• Arthur Finkelstein, Republican spin doctor
• Deborah Glick, NY State Assembly
• Jackie Goldberg, California State Assembly
• Uzi Even, Israeli MP
• Barney Frank, US congressman
• Mark Leno, California State Assembly
• Allard K. Lowenstein, US congressman
• Peter Mandelson, British politician (half Jewish)
• Carole Migden, California State Assembly
• Harvey Milk, San Francisco city supervisor
• Evan Wolfson, gay marriage activist

Religious figures

See also: List of LGBT Rabbis

• Rabbi Allen Bennett, first openly gay rabbi
• Rabbi Lionel Blue, first openly gay rabbi in the UK; broadcaster
• Rabbi Lisa Edwards, rabbi of Congregation Beth Chayim Chadashim, the world's first LGBT Synagogue
• Rabbi Steven Greenberg, first openly gay Orthodox rabbi
• Rabbi Peter Kessler, first openly gay rabbi to be ordained
• Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum, rabbi of Congregation Beth Simchat Torah, the world's largest LGBT Synagogue
• Rabbi Stacy Offner, first openly lesbian rabbi
• Rabbi Sheila Shulman, first openly lesbian rabbi in the UK
• Reuben Zellman, first openly transsexual rabbinical student (not yet ordained)

Academics

• Sanford Berman, radical librarian
• Judith Butler, queer theorist
• Lillian Faderman, historian
• Magnus Hirschfeld, sexologist
• Richard Isay, psychoanalyst
• George Mosse, historian
• B. Ruby Rich, cultural theorist & film critic
• Tobias Schneebaum, anthropologist
• Charles Silverstein, psychotherapist & author
• Otto Weininger, philosopher
• Ludwig Wittgenstein, philosopher

Showbusiness

• Chantal Akerman, film director
• Simon Amstell, comedian
• Michael Bennett, choreographer (half Jewish)
• Sandra Bernhard, comedian
• Sarah Bernhardt, stage actress (half Jewish)
• Nell Carter, actress (convert)
• Ilene Chaiken, creator of The L Word
• George Cukor, director
• Sergei Eisenstein, director (half Jewish)
• Harvey Fierstein, actor & playwright
• Eytan Fox, film director
• Leonard Frey, actor
• Stephen Fry, actor & comedian (half Jewish)
• David Geffen, film producer
• Sara Gilbert, actress
• Judy Gold, comedian
• Todd Graff, actor & filmmaker
• Nina Hartley, porn actress
• Todd Haynes, film director (half Jewish)
• Tab Hunter, actor (half Jewish)
• Larry Kert, stage actor
• Lincoln Kirstein, dance impressario
• Matt Lucas, comedian
• Kimberly Peirce, director (half Jewish?)
• Léa Pool, director (half Jewish)
• Irving Rapper, director
• Jerome Robbins, choreographer
• Leontine Sagan, director
• John Schlesinger, film director
• Antony Sher, stage actor
• Bryan Singer, film director
• Annie Sprinkle, performance artist
• Darren Star, tv producer & screenwriter
• Mauritz Stiller, director
• Jason Stuart, actor-comedian
• Lily Tomlin, comedian
• Robin Tyler, comedian
• Bruce Vilanch, comedy writer

Musicians

• Howard Ashman, musical writer
• Babydaddy, member of Scissor Sisters
• Jean-Pierre Barda, member of Army of Lovers
• Frieda Belinfante, conductor (half Jewish)
• Leonard Bernstein, composer
• Marc Blitzstein, composer
• Aaron Copland, composer
• Dana International, singer
• David Diamond, composer
• Ani DiFranco, singer/songwriter (half Jewish)
• Alix Dobkin, singer/songwriter
• Brian Epstein, manager of The Beatles
• Frances Faye, jazz singer
• William Finn, musical writer
• Sandy Gallin, manager, talent agent, producer
• Reynaldo Hahn, composer (half Jewish)
• Lorenz Hart, musical writer
• Jerry Herman, musical writer
• Vladimir Horowitz, pianist
• Janis Ian, singer/songwriter
• John Kander & Fred Ebb, musical writers
• Wanda Landowska, harpsichordist
• Marilyn Lerner, jazz pianist
• Meredith Monk, performance artist
• Jon Moss, member of Culture Club
• Laura Nyro, singer/songwriter (half Jewish)
• Peaches, electrothrash artist
• Phranc, singer/songwriter
• Hilary Rosen, former head of the RIAA
• Rachael Sage, singer/songwriter
• Marc Shaiman, musical writer
• Jill Sobule, singer/songwriter
• Stephen Sondheim, musical writer

Writers

• Leroy Aarons, journalist, founder of NLGJA
• Jon Robin Baitz, playwright
• Nathalie Barney, literary salon keeper
• Kate Bornstein, author & performance artist
• Jane Bowles, writer
• Bryher, novelist (probably half Jewish)
• Charles Busch, playwright
• Leslie Feinberg, author & activist
• Hubert Fichte, author (half Jewish)
• Edward Field, poet
• Helen Fremont, author
• Allen Ginsberg, poet
• Jacob Israël de Haan, poet
• Richard Hall, writer & literary critic
• Marilyn Hacker, poet
• William Hoffman, playwright
• Richard Howard, poet & translator
• Max Jacob, poet
• Chester Kallman, poet & librettist
• Moisés Kaufman, playwright
• Larry Kramer, playwright, co-founder of GMHC
• Tony Kushner, playwright
• Boleslaw Lesmian, poet
• Arthur Laurents, playwright & librettist
• Amy Levy, novelist & poet
• Jesse Liberty, writer & programmer, bisexual
• Robin Morgan, feminist writer
• Joan Nestle, writer & archivist
• Leslea Newman, author
• Marcel Proust, novelist (half Jewish)
• Adrienne Rich, poet
• Paul Rudnick, playwright
• Muriel Rukeyser, poet
• Umberto Saba, poet (half Jewish)
• Siegfried Sassoon, poet (half Jewish)
• Sarah Schulman, writer & activist
• Martin Sherman, playwright
• Susan Sontag, essayist & novelist
• Stephen Spender, poet & essayist (half Jewish)
• Gertrude Stein, writer
• Julian Stryjkowski, writer
• Alice B. Toklas, literary figure
• Karen X. Tulchinsky, writer
• Rebecca Walker, feminist writer (half Jewish)

Artists

• Gilbert Adrian, fashion designer
• Ross Bleckner, painter
• Brad Braverman, photographer & video artist
• Claude Cahun, photographer
• Laurie Toby Edison, photographer
• Rudi Gernreich, fashion designer
• Gluck, painter
• Frank Israel, architect
• Marc Jacobs, fashion designer
• Frida Kahlo, painter (half Jewish)
• Michael Kors, fashion designer (half Jewish)
• Annie Leibovitz, photographer
• Herbert List, photographer (half? Jewish)
• Isaac Mizrahi, fashion designer
• Zac Posen, fashion designer
• Herb Ritts, photographer
• Simeon Solomon, painter
• Jorge Zontal, artist, member of General Idea

Sports

• Robert Dover, 6-time Olympic equestrianist
• Dr. Renee Richards, tennis player

Miscellaneous

• Domino Harvey, model & bounty hunter (Jewish father)
• Leopold and Loeb, murderers
• Steve Rubell, co-founder of Studio 54

Related figures

Persons of debated sexual orientation:

• King David & Jonathan, biblical characters (see Jonathan and David)
• Maya Deren, avant-garde filmmaker
• Andrea Dworkin, feminist writer
• Anna Freud, psychoanalyst
• Emma Goldman, anarchist leader
• Herschel Grynszpan, assassin
• Moss Hart, librettist
• Danny Kaye, actor & comedian
• Calvin Klein, fashion designer
• Ed Koch, New York mayor
• Nancy Lieberman, basketball player
• Ken Mehlman, politician
• Lou Reed, singer

Straight contributors to LGBT culture:

• Bella Abzug, congresswoman (gay rights campaigner)
• Jonathan Ames, author (explores blurred boundaries in human sexuality)
• Hélène Cixous, feminist philosopher (contributed to queer theory)
• Job Cohen, mayor of Amsterdam (officiated first same-sex weddings)
• Irwin Cotler, Canadian Justice minister (introduced Bill C-38)
• Billy Crystal, actor (played Jodie Dallas in Soap)
• Yael Dayan, Israeli MP (gay rights campaigner)
• Jacques Derrida, philsoopher (contributed to queer theory)
• Michael Gottlieb & Joel Weisman, doctors (early identifiers of AIDS)
• Judith Light, actress (gay rights advocate)
• Herbert Marcuse, philosopher (influence on sexual liberation theories)
• Judd Marmor, psychiatrist (successfully campaigned to remove homosexuality from the DSM)
• Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, queer theorist
• George Weinberg, psychologist (coined the word homophobia)

Fictional characters

• Arnold Beckoff, drag queen from Torch Song Trilogy
• Queer Duck Duckstein, duck from Queer Duck
• Harold, one of The Boys in the Band
• Daniel Hirsh, family doctor from Sunday Bloody Sunday
• Louis Ironson, court clerk from Angels in America
• Melanie Marcus, lawyer from Queer as Folk
• Posner, student from The History Boys
• Willow Rosenberg, witch from Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• Jenny Schecter, fiction writer from The L Word
• Jessica Stein, journalist from Kissing Jessica Stein
• Thea, bookstore clerk from Dykes to Watch Out For