Google Doodle: Freddie Mercury

Freddie would've been 65 today. Alas, he is an eternal 45 (just a few years older than I am now), dead for these last 20 years.

Some people think Queen was one of the best rock bands ever to exist. Some will say the music was good, but nothing special. But even many of the people with the latter opinion concede Freddie Mercury was an amazing performer; as frontman of the aptly-named band, he energized audiences through stage and video.

Speculation about Freddie's sexuality was always a topic. He'd been reluctant at best to discuss it, being a somewhat private person. But it was more or less an open secret at best that he was bisexual, so when news leaked that he'd been tested positive for AIDS, most people believed it. For some time he denied it, but just before his death he finally admitted it. Two days later, he died of AIDs-related pneumonia.

Since his death, a lot of people have wondered if he should've been more open about both his sexuality and his HIV+ condition. His popularity could've lent a lot of clout to fundraising and acceptance efforts. But he was raised in an England where homosexuality was illegal, and even once that wasn't true, he was an adult in an era where being openly gay was a much riskier proposition than it is even now, when prejudice is still rampant and attacks on gays still prevalent. In the late 80s, many people still thought you could get AIDS from casual contact, and it was still thought of as a "gay disease". Only recently have most people learned better.

In his death, however, he may serve that purpose. His legacy as a performer lives on, and when those who learn about him (perhaps by clicking that awesome Google doodle) find out a musician they admire died of AIDS, perhaps they will reflect on how sad it was he felt any need to hide his sexuality and his disease from the public.