LGBT History Month: Chris Colfer

Chris Colfer

Born: May 27,1990

Golden Globe winning actor Chris Colfer was raised in Clovis, California. He is best known for his role of Kurt Hummel, the sweet singing character he plays on the hit TV show "Glee". Originally Colfer auditioned for another role on the show (he tried out for Artie), a role that eventually went to a different actor, but Glee creator and producer, Ryan Murphy, decided to create a whole new role for Chris, a character based on a person much like Colfer, an openly gay student, who is struggling to fit in, to deal with his sexuality, and how to deal with the issue of bullying. "It has definitely been the most rewarding thing I have ever experienced," Chris admitted. "It is also the most overwhelming thing I have ever experienced. I remember when I was growing up in high school. Being gay was the absolute worst thing you could ever possibly be. It was like the bottom of the food chain. Everyone was called gay in a negative sense." Bulling is an issue that has been close to Colfer's heart so he has also worked with the Trevor Project and the "It gets better" campaign to help end negative stereotypes about gays, put a stop to bullying, and to help young people who are considering suicide.

Despite the fact that Colfer had no real acting or singing training, he was offered the role of a life time when he auditioned for Glee. He might not have had formal training, but he's got talent in Spades, a fact proven by the many accomplishments and awards he has won since the shows inception in 2009. As mentioned above, he won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor, he also won a Teen Choice Award, and he was named one of Time Magazine's "100 Most Influential People in the World" in 2011.

Besides acting, Chris is now an accomplished author. In 2012, a busy year for Colfer, he published his first novel "The Land of Stories" . He also wrote the screenplay for, and stared in, the coming of age comedy "Struck by Lightning," which premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival, AND he continued his work on Glee.

Colfer's work has shed a positive light on the LGBT community and he is one of Equality Forum's 31 LGBT Icons for 2012's LGBT History Month. www.equalityforum.com www.trevorproject.com www.itgetsbetter.org