It Just Took the Desire Away - Tim Gunn Opens Up About 43 Years of Celibacy
Former Tim Gunn opened up candidly about why he has remained celibate for more than 40 years, sharing a deeply personal story on Chelsea Handler’s “Dear Chelsea” podcast on Thursday, February 19.
The 72-year-old revealed that a devastating breakup nearly half a century ago reshaped his approach to relationships.
“I had a very serious nine-year relationship in Washington, D.C., and I loved this person deeply and would have done anything for him,” Gunn said.
“I still remember the night it all ended. We were in bed watching MAS*H, and he told me, ‘I have no patience for you any longer. I want you to leave.’”
Gunn described the immediate aftermath of leaving his partner’s home. “I drove to my apartment on Rock Creek Parkway and had to pull off because I was hyperventilating. I was beside myself with self-pity and self-flagellation. It was awful.”
He explained that his former partner was also a colleague, which made the breakup even more complex. “It wasn’t as though I would never see him again.
That night, he told me he’d been with just about everyone he could, and I had been loyal. He was the only person I’d ever been with,” Gunn recalled.
The heartbreak, he said, eventually transformed into anger and caution.
“The self-pity turned to unbridled anger because I thought he may have given me a death sentence.
"I was tested every six months for ten years for HIV, thankfully always clean. But any time I was tempted to pursue something serious with someone, all of this would come rushing back, and it just took the desire away.”
Gunn, who executive produced Project Runway and now stars with Heidi Klum in Making the Cut, admitted that living celibate and alone took adjustment.
“I have to say, being celibate and living alone was a bit of an adjustment, but now I wouldn’t have it any other way,” he said.
After Handler offered sympathy, Gunn reflected on life’s unexpected turns.
“Things happen for a reason, and sometimes the reason isn’t revealed immediately. It may take days, weeks, months, or even years. Had this relationship not fallen apart, I would never have moved to New York. It would never have happened,” he said.
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