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Update: Dumbledore was gay, says 'Potter' author 
OCTOBER 19, 2007 at 9:32 PM
Posted by CHEESER
Source: HPANA
Answering a question posed to her at tonight's book reading at Carnegie Hall in New York, Harry Potter author JK Rowling said she "always saw Dumbledore as gay" and that the Hogwarts headmaster originally fell in love with the wizard Grindelwald in his youth.
Rowling also said she had read through a script for the movie adaptation of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and corrected a passage in which Dumbledore was reminiscing about a past female lover by crossing it out and scrawling "Dumbledore is gay" in the margin.
Upon hearing her response, a hush fell over the audience in attendence and then applause exploded. Rowling remarked that if she had known that would be the response, she would've revealed her thoughts on Dumbledore "years" earlier.
More on tonight's event to follow shortly, including the full question and answer segment!
(Dumbledore fan art by Lisa M. Rourke
. Used with permission.)
UPDATE: A recap of tonight's event: Keith Olbermann, from MSNBC, introduced Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling at tonight’s last event in the States on her "Open Book Tour." In tonight’s session with over 2,000 fans in attendance J.K. answered 16 fan questions in which she revealed the above story as well as Neville’s and Hagrid’s martial status and the job occupations of Harry’s parents.
Jo read from chapter 19, after a Horcrux was destroyed and Ron returned to Harry and Hermione. The author took on the voices of each of the characters making sure that Hermione's anger at Ron was projected to the audience. At one point Jo lost her composure when she read the line "No, I heard you coming out of my pocket," which she did not finish, as the audience broke out in laughter.
Below is a summary of the questions and answers from tonight's event (paraphrased):
She was surprised that no one had ever asked her what Dumbledore's wand was made of. If ever asked this question she would have simply said "It's made of Elder" and left it at that.
In answering a question about Neville and finding love, Jo said that he married the landlady from the Leaky Cauldron (which happened to be Hannah Abbott), and that living above the Leaky Cauldron would have impressed his students at Hogwarts.
When asked why she chose Molly to kill Bellatrix she replied that she wanted to (1) show that Molly was an extremely talented witch even though she spent most of her time in the kitchen, and (2) she wanted to compare the obsession Bellatrix had with Voldemort to Molly's maternal love for her children.
The next question referred to what would have occurred if Arthur had died in Order of the Phoenix. Jo said that it would have changed books fix, six and seven and that Ron's character would have lost his sense of humor and taken away Harry's refuge at the Weasley home. She also mentioned that Ron's humor stemmed from insecurities and immaturity and that he was the last to become an adult, by facing his fears in the last book.
When eight-year-old Mia asked about Aberforth's goat, Jo asked her age and said that just for her the answer would be "that the goats were easy to keep clean and that they had curly horns," as the audience roared with laughter.
Now for the question that stunned the audience - Did Dumbledore love anyone? Jo started to say, "I always saw Dumbledore as gay" as a hush fell on the audience followed by a excited response by all in attendance. She went on to say that she had recently read the script for Half-Blood Prince and noticed a passage in which Dumbledore recalled a past female love – she immediately crossed out the passage and added the words "Dumbledore is gay" in the margin.
When asked about parseltongue, Jo answered that Ron had mastered one sound but it wouldn't be a language someone could learn.
What was in Dumbledore's letter to the Dursleys in book one? Jo responded by saying that Petunia had wanted to go to Hogwarts and by taking in Harry she was taking in a part of the world that she never participated in.
Then next question is one that many fans have answered themselves in reference to the Basilisk and why did it not kill Voldemort's soul in Harry. Rowling stated that Harry was not destroyed beyond repair because Fawkes was around to heal him but later was conveniently absent when other Horcruxes were destroyed.
Jo replied that Harry did not consult with Dumbledore's portrait for three reasons: (1) The portrait was not available as it was at Hogwarts, (2) Dumbledore didn't want to tempt Harry with the Hallows but wanted him to learn of them slowly due to Harry's flaws and (3) it was too easy and there wouldn't be much of a plot.
When asked to confirm that the Death Eaters were based on the Nazis, Jo answered by saying that it was a conscience decision, people will die and that you shouldn’t believe what your government or newspapers tell you.
When Jo reminisced about completing the first versus the last book she said that it was very similar and that her husband, who was in attendance, hated her for a few weeks because she was unbearable to live with.
After Jo had answered the initial 12 questions a spokesperson from Scholastic revealed that four additional questions would be asked by sweepstakes winners in the audience. First up asked if Malfoy owed Harry a life-debt and Jo stated that there was no magical tie between the two but that Malfoy had to be forever grateful to Harry for saving his life (which is evident in the last chapter of book seven when they meet at platform 9¾).
Donna, from the very top of Carnegie Hall was next in line and after sprinting down the stairwell she breathlessly asked, "What were the careers after graduation of James, Lily, Sirius and Lupin?" Jo said Lupin was unemployable and impoverished because of his condition and that James, Lily and Sirius were employed full-time in the Order of the Phoenix (James was rich and that's how they lived).
When asked did Hagrid ever find love, the audience sighed and Jo responded that she should probably change her answer but that, no, he never did.
The last question of the night referred to Snape's portrait and Rowling answered that Harry would have insisted it be hung in the headmaster's office at Hogwarts but that he probably would not have visited it to converse with Snape. Jo is still surprised when she reads that fans are torn about Snape, who is a complicated character, and unequivocally stated that Snape was "bitter, vindictive and mean."
A special thanks goes to Alisha for inviting HPANA to the event. Geri would like to say on a personal note that the night was brilliant and awesome and that seeing J.K. face-to-face was something that she never thought would happen! You can see some photos from the event here.
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226-232
Witch
Points: 922
Lilium says:
Wow! Good one JK! I was shocked at first! I thought it was a joke! But I supose I shouldn't be so surprised. It's a very interesting idea, but I hope it doesn't change many people's view about him... I know it did for my best friend... too bad.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 10:45 AM EST
Witch
Points: 894
Yoelle says:
Oh my god I would never have guessed that!!!I always thought LV was gay but Dumbledore....
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 10:52 AM EST
Order of Merlin, 4th Class
Points: 1338
Scarysecrets says:
I am not happy. Thats about all I can say right now. I understand that maybe she needed this to help kids with the notion that it is ok to be gay...or that maybe she wasn't even thinking about it. But, it kinda just ruined any image I had of him. I have nothing against gay people, in fact my brother is gay...but, this just floors me. Maybe I just need a bit longer then 5 minutes to process it.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 10:53 AM EST
Witch
Points: 588
danebabe says:
I'm glad that JK didn't kill Mr. Weasley though. I think it might have messed up the plot a little bit irreversibly. How many people would have loved to live at the Burrow? I would.
and Dumblydorr is gay? Wow. Never saw that one coming.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 11:29 AM EST
Order of Merlin, 2nd Class
Points: 1660
shivon says:
What about all the references to Madam Pomfrey making Dumbldore blush? I for sure never saw this one coming.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 11:41 AM EST
Witch
Points: 559
ff6fiend666 says:
Wow I was just lamanting the other day about the lack of gay characters in harry potter then this happens. So awesome, I wonder if there are any other gay characters, I've always wondered about hooch and mcgonnagal.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 11:48 AM EST
Witch
Points: 977
Draco~Angel says:
WOW. I never saw that coming. EVER. What a shock. I thought he had a love for Mcgonagall.But that is so cool. Another twist in the Harry Potter world.
I am so happy the neville fell in love and with Hanna. I always thought that if he wouldn't get with Luna, I would like him to be with Hannah.
AMazing JK. Your are amazing.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 11:48 AM EST
Muggle
Points: 44
zara-zora says:
Wow that was very unexpected!! i really dident see it comeing, i dident even know that he had a one love! but oh well!:)
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 12:16 PM EST
Squib
Points: 193
gobby62442 says:
I always thought that Lockhart was gay. It's kind of a fun detail to know about Dumbledore though.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 12:42 PM EST
Head Girl
Points: 493
frannie says:
Wow! That was one heck of a revelation. Well, that explains him not being married.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 1:15 PM EST
Prime Hunter
Points: 4272
Orbster says:
That is going to through so many people off!...especially the highly prejudice. But i think it is a very strong and confident move from her part to admit that he's gay.
I also like the reason why she didn't kill Mr. Weasley..very good point!!!
I'm also stumped when i realized that i never thought about what Dumbledore'd wands is made of!
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 1:29 PM EST
Order of Merlin, 4th Class
Points: 1338
the_girl_who_lived89 says:
Dumbledore is gay, that was a Good One JK! I like the fact he was gay and i honesly thought about the idea in no 7!
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 2:11 PM EST
Witch
Points: 500
yuko says:
Yay! this woman always finds a way to surprise fans with new details...
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 2:26 PM EST
Professor
Points: 1029
GeeMessy says:
WOW!
at first I did not believe what I was hearing when I saw it on Yahoo.
I had to come here to see Hpana's take.
Dumbledore is gay, how cool.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 2:32 PM EST
Professor
Points: 1059
humes says:
I'd never thought I'd be greeted by this! How did he get through the screening process at Hogwarts? No one saw this coming, I didn't see it coming! But no complaints here, it's about time the LGBT people got their Potter champion!
Gay lobby: so excited.
Christian right: ready to blow. Just another reason not to read the books.
But it's nice to see so many people take it well. Says a lot for gay rights in America, doesn't it?
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 2:42 PM EST
Head Girl
Points: 465
KarateKid says:
The answers to other questions were, as always, fun to read. Ok, now, nobody start bashing me for hating on gays because I'm not. It's just that Dumbledore seemed so un-gay to me. Now I see him totally differently. It's hard to explain because I'm sure it'll make me sound like a totally intolerant b****. Talking of tolerance, if that's the reason JK wanted to let everyone know Dumbledore was gay, what's she going to do next? Say McGonogall was bi and Snape was a Jew? No offence to anybody but I really don't like this. In fact, I kinda feel like crying 'cause the Dumbledore I thought I knew was so different to who he's turning out to be.
I know I'm going to keep denying this in my head by saying it wasn't in the books. Sometimes I forget JKR wrote the books and she can twist and mould them in whichever way she wants.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 3:02 PM EST
Order of Merlin, 3rd Class
Points: 1402
~Hermione says:
This honestly surprised me. I liked the report. It was certainly great to be there.
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 3:21 PM EST
Sirius's Veil Thrower
Points: 4318
SiriusBlacksGodDaughter says:
I never expected him to be GAY! I mean, gosh, everyone thought that he was madly inlove with McGonagall. I mean, he's not flamboyant or anything!
~Drish~
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 3:26 PM EST
Prefect
Points: 365
Prince of Slytherin says:
I always hade the thought malfoy was gay, but DUMBLEDORE! HOLY CRAP
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 3:29 PM EST
Witch
Points: 645
Rupert's Fangirl says:
I'm not going to lie, this is really shocking and somewhat disturbing to me. It just seems to have changed the relationships to me and it needs some time to process.
She did write him as a very flamboyant person in the way he dresses though....
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 3:51 PM EST
Auror
Points: 2195
Hecate3fold says:
I just love how she can fill in all the little bits of character in all of the people she created.
I'm not one to read between the lines in a book, but now I can see why Dumbledore was crushed by his parting with Grimwald, they were lovers, which has nothing to do with him being a wise old sage.
He's still the perfect Headmaster that he always was.
Blessings! Hecate3fold!
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 3:53 PM EST
Muggle
Points: 43
Rip 'N' Snort says:
KarteKid, you said "I kinda feel like crying 'cause the Dumbledore I thought I knew was so different to who he's turning out to be".. How? He's still the same Dumbledore, you've just found something else about him. Being gay doesn't make any difference to the way you treat other people. Someone else also mentioned they felt disturbed about why Dumbledore liked Harry so much. I think Dumbledore's affection for Harry had NOTHING to do with him being gay. It was more of a fatherly affection. As a gay person myself, I'm so cheered that the vast majority of people on here don't see it as a problem. Just shows how tolerent, intelligent and non-judgemental Harry Potter fans are. Good on you all!
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 3:55 PM EST
Order of Merlin, 3rd Class
Points: 1463
~Harry's true love~ says:
OH MY FUDGEN GOD!!!!!
Ahhh! I can't belive it, not that I have anything wrong with it. Nothing at all, I just can't belive it. It was in the back of my mind but I never really wanted to say anything because I didn't think that she would do something like that in a childrens book! Wow, now I can look back and see some things about him. hmmm....
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 3:56 PM EST
Heart Of Music
Points: 3522
_-_~*ZeE*J@Y*~_-_ says:
OH MY GOD.. DUMBLEDORE? this is the weirdest information Ive ever heard ..
HAHAH .. I CANT STOP LAUGHING ..
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 4:35 PM EST
Witch
Points: 532
Mrs. Mollywobbles says:
It seems like it shouldn't be surprising when you think about it...but it still made me fall over laughing!
Oh I LOVE that Dumbledore was gay...but now I'm afraid that everytime I re-read the books I'm gonna find new meanings to EVERYTHING Dumbleodore does..ha.
Didn't ANYONE ask her about the veil???
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 5:12 PM EST
Witch
Points: 823
OffTheLoop says:
wow. Dumbledore. I wonder what the screenwriter thought when she added that little note to the script. :) and yay for Neville with Hannah!
Posted Oct 20, 2007 at 5:12 PM EST
226-232
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