Last week former Who’s the Boss star Danny Pintauro told Oprah Winfrey that he had a big secret to share with her and her millions of viewers and last night he revealed that he’s been HIV-positive for the past dozen years.
In teaser clips released late last week ahead of his appearance on Oprah: Where Are They Now?, Pintauro spoke briefly about crystal meth use in the gay community, including his own, and how he was forced to come out as gay in 1997 after the National Enquirer threatened him.
Related: PHOTOS: Former Child Star Danny Pintauro Married His Boyfriend Today
However, the 39-year-old’s secret which will likely have the bigger impact was saved for the broadcast when Pintauro shared that he tested positive for HIV 12 years ago.
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“I was living in New York at the time and completely clueless to the idea that I was positive. I went in for a regular checkup. It was just regular blood work. You go in, and you sort of waited two weeks on pins and needles — or at least I did, because I was just terrified of the idea of getting HIV.”
Pintauro told Oprah that he’d just ended a two year relationship and had was eager to experiment sexually.
“I was doing crystal meth, which completely ruins your immune system. I’d been doing it at that point very briefly, but it was three weeks or so, off and on. I had just come out of a two-year relationship, and I discovered in that relationship that there was more I wanted to explore sexually. Crystal meth takes away your inhibitions… And if you want to explore that adventurous side, taking the drug is going to put you there. I was experimenting. And believe it or not, I thought that I was being safe in that encounter. I know exactly when it happened.”
The actor joins other celebrities, such as rapper Mykki Blanco and another former sitcom star Jm. J. Bullock, who’ve revealed they’re living with HIV. Pintauro says that Who’s the Boss? costars Judith Light and Tony Danza have been supportive and he wants to become a positive force within the LGBT communities.
“I feel like in the gay community, we’ve been spending so much energy trying to become socially acceptable and so much energy trying to make marriage happen – which I think are 100 percent important – and, in doing that, we’ve forgotten about taking care of each other a little bit,” he said. “Back when the AIDS crisis was happening … back when we weren’t really socially acceptable, we still took good care of each other because we only had each other. We didn’t have all of our other friends and coworkers or any of that to turn to.”
He adds, “Now that we’ve gotten to the place, we need to look within again. We need to take a step back, and we need to say, ‘OK, here’s where we are, and here’s what we need to do to get our community back to that place of taking care of each other.’ ”
Watch a clip of Pintauro open up to Winfrey below.
Brian JC Kneeland
is that the big secret or is his drug addiction? I’m not sure it is that he is positive!
Ben Bullock
He really was a sweet guy. He had some hard times. I really wish him the best
Sand Nierenberg
Good luck
Sand Nierenberg
Those of us including me that don’t have these problems can’t understand I wish him well
sportsguy1983
Sucks for hi. And hopefully he remains as healthy as positive but it goes to show that irresponsible decisions we make in life can and will lead to bad consequences.
JimboinLA
Long exasperated sigh. This is so sad. “I thought that I was being safe in that encounter. I know exactly when it happened.” Which means he knows exactly how he could have prevented it. As a forty nine year old HIV negative gay man I denied myself my ‘right’ to “explore that adventurous side”. It just wasn’t worth shortening my life span for a few moments of sexual pleasure…for me. I was fortunate (or unfortunate) to have been living in NYC in the late eighties and early nineties and because I supported myself selling Cannabis on the black market many customers were AIDS patients fighting the adverse effects of AZT. I watched about twenty young gay men die when I was between the ages of nineteen and twenty three. It terrified me and probably did a lot of damage to me but I vowed NEVER to put myself in a situation where I could become infected. I denied myself a lot of pleasure. And it sucked a lot. But seeing stories like this I know I made the right decision. Maybe I just had more will power than some. I don’t know how I did it but seeing all those people die was a huge motivating factor. So sorry for Danny. I hope they find a cure before the disease shortens his life span. It might not cut you down immediately like it used to but it can still take years off your life and it’s just not worth it for a night’s pleasure.
Mike Duderbody
a friend and i hung out w him once at the mirage for drinks. he looked Very different than this pic. he looks great.
Bisexual-Transwoman
No surprise here, it’s obvious to anyone that looks at him that he’s HIV+. He’s not “sober” from Tina either; but that’s not a secret.
Curty
There’s a lot more HIV positive people out here than people think. He ended a relationship to explore more sexual, seems like it was a bad idea just like the drugs. Hope he can make the best of his life now. Quit the drugs and being positive, hope he is practicing safe sex now.
Curty
@Bisexual-Transwoman: How can you look at him and see he is Positive?
QJ201
I remember seeing his profile listed in NYC on hookup sites and it was pretty clear he was into partying and kink by by the pictures.
Kevin J Desmond
I’m not HIV poz and I’ve never been addiction to drugs, I know and understand this can be really tough for some people. I wish him well and a good and clean recoverey from the drug addiction.
Billy Budd
@Bisexual-Transwoman: How do you know he is HIV+ and not sober?
Arnold Stollar
Much ado about nothing?
Arnold Stollar
Men pay for their sins , sooner or later,women too; it’s no joke !
Homo Erectus
He’s cute. I’d like to see him blow Tony Danza. lol.
Homo Erectus
@Minoso Torrez: FLAGGED. Go away.
Xzamilio
@Minoso Torrez: You sound hot. Let’s touch dicks.
Billy Budd
@Minoso Torrez: If you visit gay websites to persecute gays is because you are curious but cannot admit it to yourself. Do us a favor and come out.
Brian
If Danny Pintauro used crystal meth, I have no sympathy for him. He knew what he was doing.
If you make the choice to use crystal meth, you have to wear the consequences of your choice. This includes the possibility of contracting HIV.
Let me repeat – if he used crystal meth, I have no sympathy for him. Zero, zilch, nada.
Also, if crystal meth ruins your immune system, it just goes to show that drugs in general are capable of destroying your immune system. Maybe that’s why immunity problems developed in the drug-sodden world of the gay sub-culture all those years ago.
Dan Levin
Who??
Curty
@Minoso Torrez: But heterosexual adultery and fornication and acts that heterosexuals do are perfectly ok a d clean right? Because heterosexuals are first classes, majority citizens and without any kind of sin as long as they are straight then can be forgiven right? The hypocrisy of religious doctrine. Smh
Brian
Anal acts are no different whether they are between a man and woman, or a man and man. No difference at all. If both partners are HIV-free, no HIV will be caught. There is no risk as far as HIV transmission is concerned. No risk at all.
Anal acts, however, pose a risk of E Coli transmission. E Coli are bacteria which exists in all bowels, male and female. While they reside in the bowel, they are harmless. However, once they move to other parts of the body, such as the urethra, they pose a risk of infection.
Memo to all people: anal sex won’t give you HIV if you and your partner are HIV-free.
Bisexual-Transwoman
@Curty: Facial wasting, as a side effect of meds.
@Brian: Yes he did use meth but he’s going on Orca just for attention.
William Adkins
We all have our row to hoe…I’m just glad that Danny has found someone supportive, loving, and nurturing. That’s REALLY what equal marriage is about…
money718
@JimboinLA: You guys should all get together and write a long, detailed book. That way you will not feel the need to post how “lucky” you were or how many people you knew died, every time an HIV poz story comes out. We are aware.
@Bisexual-Transwoman: You cannot tell lol. He has no signs of facial wasting and actually looks good. Come to my practice sometimes, and you will see what facial wasting really looks like.
Jorge Antonio Coronel
HIV is not the end anymore. We make our own hell. I’ve been there…..I wish you LOVE ð???
Me2
While listening to him tell his story, I developed a soft spot for him and just wanted give him a hug. I truly wish him well!!!
John Kuehnle
I was mad and annoyed reading this, I watched Who’s the Boss in the 80s, but then I realized he can live a long life with the treatments that are out there.
stranded
Danny come back to acting. I’d love to see you weekly on the small screen. Maybe because i’m still holding my boyhood crush. :p I’d think he’d fit well back into 1/2 hour comedy. For some reason “Clipped” on TBS comes to mind.
Arnold Stollar
He’s. Giving up on homosexuality ?
Arnold Stollar
He’s joining the Marines?
bicurious
I wish Danny the very best and commend him for his honesty and bravery. Such honesty and bravery when brought into the open like this can help other people. Now if only the gays would listen to his plea that they go back to caring for one another again. These days it seem all to much to be the case that most gays are stuck in an adolescent Peter Pan stage and only care about themselves and experiencing ever more extreme bodily pleasures.
Cobalt Blue
” …I was eager to experiment sexually “…What a shameless low life. No wonder some gays doesn’t want to be associated with this twisted ‘ gay community ‘.
JimboinLA
@money718: You can make all the snarky comments you want. I hope you never have to watch twenty of your friends shrivel up and die right in front of your eyes. Those of us who lived through it in the eighties and nineties earned the right to remind people of what we experienced. And those of us who managed to avoid getting infected in the midst of all that deserve to be proud of our negative status. Don’t be part of the problem.
gscott
@Bisexual-Transwoman: The same way that anyone who looks at you can tell you’re a man?
DarkZephyr
@gscott: Oh COME ON. That was BEYOND uncalled for. What made you say something so repugnantly evil and transphobic just because you were annoyed by her opinion about Danny? That was disgraceful.
DerekR
@DarkZephyr: It’s not because of “her” opinions on Danny, rather I think it’s because “she” is a terrible person….
gscott that was hilarious and justly deserved
BigG
Danny is right. We have forgotten how to take care of each other . Gays have become bitter and awful towards each other. Just look at some of the comments here. Disgusting. What happened to our community?
jag4313
I could be wrong but I think I have heard this before. Didn’t he come out and say he was poz a few years ago? Going into this article I felt like I already knew that. And about the drug addiction too. hmm?
Brian
It was the gay scene which killed a lot of gay men. It concentrated men into small spaces where the opportunity for promiscuity was everywhere. When you concentrate humans – especially highly sexed men – into small spaces, it concentrates their disease-causing germs as well. Concentration always leads to amplification, as any microbiologist will tell you.
Once you hit a threshold, the rate of illness zooms up like an action potential. Combine this with the use of immune system-destroying drugs, and you have the perfect recipe for AIDS.
AIDS was no accident but the “logical” product of concentration, amplification, and drug use.
Curty
I think Danny should use his story on as a cautionary tale that sexual, twisted gratification is not as important as your health. I commend his comments on meth. I never got into the party scene. I had friends who liked to drink but I don’t even do that. I think my upbringing kept me from doing a lot of dangerous stuff. I wonder why he turned to drugs and want he wanted to explore sexually?
Glücklich
@Bisexual-Transwoman:
If “Orca” is an autocorrection it’s the funniest I’ve seen in a long time.
gscott
@DarkZephyr: I missed your post filled with outrage over
B-T’s original comment. I was merely pointing out the idiocy of “you can tell by looking” so spare me your pearl clutching.
Bisexual-Transwoman
@money718: Yes he does have facial wasting.
http://i.huffpost.com/gen/1073486/images/o-DANNY-PINTAURO-ENGAGED-facebook.jpg
@Glücklich: No I call Oprah that since she’s annoying to me.
Bisexual-Transwoman
@Brian: Actually it’s unsafe sex that causes HIV/AIDS, not promiscuity. Plus during the late 70s and early 80s you had gay and bisexual men and even a lot of heterosexual people who were not promiscuous but who did have unsafe sex as HIV/AIDS was very new then and it was not really known how it was transmitted who got infected that way.
Bisexual-Transwoman
@gscott: LMAO you think I haven’t heard that one before? I’m more of a man than you ever will be.
Charlie in Charge
Glad to hear things are turning around for him; I remember a few years ago pics of his Adam4Adam (or was it Manuhunt) profile surfaced and in them he was pretty explicit about the things that he wanted to be done to him (could have been a fake of course) so I think in the interview he is downplaying that episode of his life slightly. But, unlike Brian above, while I’ve never tried meth or its ilk I have a lot of sympathy for people caught up in that spiral. If he’s a positive influence for folks trying to get out of that life then more power to him.
Nick Grillo
Super Brave Move – Well Done!
Random
@Bisexual-Transwoman: That huffpo photo could be any guy in their mid-late 30s. You’re just seeing what you want to see.
Alfredo
I am about to turn 71. In 1988 my partner died of Aids, and I I was also diagnosed. I almost died from Gillian Barre, recovered but became permanently crippled. The problem: pills and doctors keep you alive, but the quality of life inexorably deteriorates.
Curty
@Alfredo: why in the hell would a 71 man be on queerty? Lol I’m in my late 20’s and ask myself the same question… sorry about your partner… I was born in the mid 1980’s and thank God my parents didn’t do drugs and weren’t promiscuous. Its not a death sentence anymore but there still is this stigma and as a gay man you don’t really want to have that stigma on you. I know many HIV pos people tho. Their stories are harrowing about the deception from former lovers and a need by many to be fucked by so, so many guys. Sad actually. I’m glad some confined in me though knowing I would be there for them.
Alfredo
To be gay, one has to have iron balls, Junior. If not, we do not survive.
gscott
@Bisexual-Transwoman: Yes that’s exactly what i thought you are neither bisexual nor a transwoman, just another straight man trolling gay websites to sow dissension.
Stache99
@Bisexual-Transwoman: He looks damn good for almost 40 there. That pic has him looking very healthy. Idiot.
Stache99
@Brian: “If Danny Pintauro used crystal meth, I have no sympathy for him. He knew what he was doing.”
Do you also say that to people with heart disease, diabetes, cancers like melanoma, etc.? All of which could be avoided.
“AIDS was no accident but the “logical” product of concentration, amplification, and drug use.”
How do you explain Africa with the majority being heterosexuals?
Stache99
@Curty: “sexual, twisted gratification is not as important as your health”
What if you do it in a healthy way. Does it still count?
Nedra
What does gays fighting for their RIGHTS have to do with irresponsible gays contracting HIV? I did not know the Gay Rights Movement started to babysit gays on how to not abuse their system with crystal meth and engaging in reckless sex?
Danny said HE KNEW hen he contracted HIV, which tells he knew the danger of crystal meth and irresponsible sex. The gay community could have achieved the right to marry and many other rights before the end of the 1990s, had it not been for the AIDS pandemic. Therefore, I am very much angry when gay people go about having reckless sex and then want to blame others when they contract HIV. If you want my sympathy, tell me you got it from your sole partner. Tell me you were raped. Tell me you were young.naive and it was your first time, BUT DON’T tell me you chose to do meth because meth helps you to connect to your wild side.
I don’t do drugs and I don’t have sympathy for no one who is negatively affected by drugs.
Fvk847
it’s sad; crystal meth is so scary and I feel there needs to be more awareness on that.
Bisexual-Transwoman
@gscott: Nope I’m bisexual and trans. But you’re just a biphobic and transphobic bigot.
@Stache99: Yes he looks healthy but he does have facial wasting or what some gay men call “protease face”.
@Nedra: Obviously Danny wanted to become HIV+ and intentionally made the choice to not have safer sex or use condoms; but this guy is addicted to meth, and is severely mentally ill.
Curty
@Stache99: What do you think? Moronic question.
Stache99
@Curty: That’s why I’m asking. What is “twisted sexual gratification” and why is it bad for your health? I just came back from Folsom and I saw lots of that there. If this more about your prudish judgement then anything else?
Stache99
@Bisexual-Transwoman: It’s called being skinny. All guys have that look. Trust me. I wish I had that issue.
Stache99
I meant “all skinny”.
NJjoe
I have several friends who are positive because of crystal meth. No judgement here, but I had no desire to try it.
NJjoe
I meant to add- I wish Danny the best and long life.
Calebspapi
Danny and I are the same age and I wish him the best of health. Now, as a gay male, some of you prove that we don’t need the GOP or religious right to run our community down. So many cannot wait to throw bricks in our circle. This man is a person, and one of our own, no matter his choices. Nothing he has done effects you, so why you mad?
But, back in the day we cared for those with AIDS or living with HIV. Now, so many of you cannot wait to be holier and nasty. I don’t care how many friends or loved ones you claimed to have buried. It gives you no right to shit on people with HIV. I also don’t care if you have HIV, you still don’t get to sit in judgement. Some of you are more lucky than perfect, having less or no sex than being vigilant. And the rest are lacking in basic human dignity and compassion. But, you demand these a tributes from straights. I’m sure that you are as damaged as the rest of us, so let of the attitude.
I also wonder how many of you perfect people support PREP or do you think all gay males are dirty and nasty unless their sexual lives are like yours? Sounds like GOP talking points to me. The true definition of a slut, is someone having more sex than you. Many of you enjoy slut shaming but cry foul when straights talk about your sex life in the same manner. Hypocrisy dyed in a rainbow.
Danny is very brave. Not for his drug usage, and not for contracting HIV. But for telling the world, even though gays like you would attempt to bash him. I hope you’re proud of yourselves and if you do contract HIV, that you never meet someone like you. I wouldn’t wish that on a rabid dog.
Boricuaex
It’s really unfortunate that he is a victim of the meth epidemic in America. He’s a very nice person.
Brian
Danny Pintauro was a victim of his own poor choices. People who use crystal meth do it by choice, at least for the first few times. Nobody forces them to use it. They use it voluntarily. They are also breaking the law.
If he became addicted to crystal meth, it was his own choices which led him to that end. I have no sympathy for addicts who chose a path that got them there.
Message to crystal meth addicts: it’s sad that you got yourselves to that point but I am not prepared to give you any sympathy and nor do I think that you deserve any sympathy beyond perhaps some medical care…at your own expense.
Matt
The first time I saw him on “Who’s the Boss” I knew he was gay. Hope he stays clean and healthy. Another gay guy with HIV. What else is new?