Rod Stewart, now 81, was forced to address a persistent and homophobic urban legend that he had performed oral sex on male sailors in a San Diego bar, leading to a hospital visit for stomach pumping. The rumour, which is physically impossible, dogged the rocker despite his three marriages and eight children.
Origin of the Rumour
In his 2012 autobiography, Stewart revealed the rumour originated as revenge by his then-publicist Tony Toon. The incident began when Stewart was on a trip to Hawaii, and a shortage of hotel rooms forced Toon to share with Stewart's seven-year-old stepson. Stewart alleged that Toon "pulled some bloke in the bar that evening and took him back to the room" where the child was staying. Stewart fired Toon the next morning.
Toon's Revenge
Stewart wrote: "Toon's revenge was absolutely inspired. He fed the press a story in which, as a consequence of an evening spent orally servicing a gang of sailors in a gay bar in San Diego, I had been required to check into a hospital emergency room to have my stomach pumped." Stewart added, "I have never orally pleasured even a solitary sailor, let alone a ship's worth in one evening. And I have never had my stomach pumped, either of naval-issue semen or of any other kind of semen." He noted that with minor variations, the story has stayed with him ever since.
Stewart's Clarification
In an interview with Katie Couric, Stewart stated he is "as heterosexual as they come" and called Toon's revenge "horrible because my kids were at school. So that is definitely not true." Despite the false rumour, Stewart has long been a supporter of the LGBTQ+ community. In 2016, he said of his son Aiden, who enjoyed dressing in his mother's clothes: "If he turns out to be a homosexual, that's okay with me. As long as he's happy."
