Anderson Cooper has recently shared that it was Richard Gere who helped him realize he was gay.

The revelation was made on Radio Andy with friend Andy Cohen from the Stonewall Inn in New York City.

Cooper recounted his encounter with Richard Gere, who starred in a play called “Bent,” which depicts the persecution of homosexuals in Nazi Germany.

He went to see the Broadway show with his mom’s two gay friends, Truman Capote, Gore Vidal, and photographer Paul Jasmin when he was only 11 years old.

Cooper recalled the opening scene of the play where a man gets out of bed without clothes and puts on an SS uniform after sleeping with another man the night before.

That moment was when Cooper realized he was not straight.

“And I just remember being like, ‘Oh my God, I’m gay.

…

I’m totally gay,'” he said.

After the play, Cooper and Jasmin got to meet Richard Gere backstage, and Cooper couldn’t speak because he was so star-struck.

Cooper eventually got the autograph he wanted but only after ten years when he interviewed Richard Gere.

Gere was pleased to sign the Playbill and loved hearing the story.

He said he never thought it was dangerous for him to portray gay characters on Broadway.

For him, it was more about the human yearning for love regardless of gender.

Richard Gere went on to act in many successful films, including “American Gigolo,” “An Officer and a Gentleman,” “Pretty Woman,” “Primal Fear,” “RUNAWAY Bride,” “Arbitrage,” and “Chicago.”

In addition to his revelations about his s**ual awakening, Cooper also spoke about his two children, Wyatt Morgan, and Sebastian Luke, with ex-partner Benjamin Maisani.

He believes that love should continue even after the end of an intimate relationship.