'Crumbl Cookies' co-founder comes out as gay

[Ali Gator]

Seriously ? He had to officially come out ? By the reactions to his 'outing' and comments over the years,  I doubt this was even a secret in his Mormon community. Anyhow, here's his story...and 'congratulations' to him...

The Crumbl Cookies co-founder, a viral gay rumor and what we can learn in the aftermath

WWW.USATODAY.COM

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Crumbl co-founder Sawyer Hemsley came out, though not the way he wanted. Keep in mind: The consequences of outing someone could be dire.

 

 

[pubic_assistance]

19 minutes ago, Ali Gator said:

I doubt this was even a secret in his Mormon community

In his defense, not everyone who acts "really gay" is actually a homosexual. In this case, I guess they hit the nail on the head...but I've known many men over the years who *pinged* my gaydar but who chose to LIVE as a heterosexual man. 

As far as WHY someone like this feels obligated to share his lifestyle with the general public is beyond me. I miss the days when everyone (mostly) minded their own business and looked the other way. Why haven't we progressed as a society to the point where your sexuality is a NON issue ? WHY does everyone seem to be SO bent on sharing their pronouns and offering up admissions of taking it up the ass ? 

[caramelsub]

1 hour ago, pubic_assistance said:

 

As far as WHY someone like this feels obligated to share his lifestyle with the general public is beyond me. I miss the days when everyone (mostly) minded their own business and looked the other way. Why haven't we progressed as a society to the point where your sexuality is a NON issue ? WHY does everyone seem to be SO bent on sharing their pronouns and offering up admissions of taking it up the ass ? 

I think it has to do with the fact that he is a public figure. He’s probably around tons of people everyday, in meetings, plus he has a huge social media following. He probably just got tired of people asking him about his personal life. Even I get tired of being asked if I have a girlfriend or if I am married, at work by my coworkers and bosses. Coming out is not a one time thing. There will always be new people in life that you haven’t met. And I live a fairly lowkey lifestyle. I’m definitely not a famous high profile ceo. If he doesn’t come out people would either just assume he really is straight, or think he is hiding his sexuality and in the closet. In his case I think it’s best to just post it on instagram so the world can just lay off his case.

[pubic_assistance]

1 minute ago, caramelsub said:

He probably just got tired of people asking him about his personal life.

I know a few celebrities who lie about the actual details of their sex life. 

It's really NONE of anyone's business in the end...so WHY does someone feel obligated to confess to what they may not want people to know ?? 🤔

When I was single and someone asked if I had a girlfriend, I simply responded "NO..I'm too busy having random sex". I never told them that I was playing for both teams. Wasn't any of their business.. .and had I been a celebrity it would have been even LESS of their business. 

[caramelsub]

8 minutes ago, pubic_assistance said:

I know a few celebrities who lie about the actual details of their sex life. 

It's really NONE of anyone's business in the end...so WHY does someone feel obligated to confess to what they may not want people to know ?? 🤔

When I was single and someone asked if I had a girlfriend, I simply responded "NO..I'm too busy having random sex". I never told them that I was playing for both teams. Wasn't any of their business.. .and had I been a celebrity it would have been even LESS of their business. 

It is none of their business I agree. In a workplace setting, only one person has ever asked me point blank if I was gay.(I won’t tell you how I responded 😉). He was straight, and wasn’t trying to hit on me.

If someone asked you in a professional/workplace setting, if you are gay, or in your case bisexual, how would you respond? I’m just genuinely curious.

[pubic_assistance]

14 minutes ago, caramelsub said:

If someone asked you in a professional/workplace setting, if you are gay, or in your case bisexual, how would you respond? I’m just genuinely curious.

Most of the "jobs" I've had (I'm self employed for many years) were full of gay men. (I work in a creative field) so the assumption was always gay until proven otherwise. 😆

[mtaabq]

Quote

If someone asked you in a professional/workplace setting, if you are gay, or in your case bisexual, how would you respond? I’m just genuinely curious.

You didn't ask this question of me so I hope you don't mind if I post a response. Any time I'm asked a question that I do not wish to answer I respond with, "Why do you want to know?" (That shuts down most people.) I use that same answer in a workplace or professional setting when I'm asked point-blank if I'm gay. (On one occasion I was asked if I was gay by a co-worker in front of our boss. Before I could answer my boss said, to my co-worker, "If that were any of your business you would already know that answer to that question. Get back to work.") When asked by a total stranger I usually reply, "Forgive me, but I don't know you." 

[CuriousByNature]

4 hours ago, pubic_assistance said:

Why haven't we progressed as a society to the point where your sexuality is a NON issue ? 

This 👆

[pubic_assistance]

2 hours ago, mtaabq said:

On one occasion I was asked if I was gay by a co-worker in front of our boss.

So weird.

I have never had a single person who wasn't a very close friend (or a roommate) ask me this question. I find it shocking that anyone would be so invasive as to ask such a personal question of someone who they work with. At most people have asked " are you dating anyone"...(possibly digging around to see which way I swing). But even with THAT, I would give an evasive answer because I didnt even think THAT was everyone's business. 

It's not like I'm closeted. All my friends have known I swing both ways for years as does everyone in my family. (We are JUST getting into that discussion with my 18 year old kids.) I just think that unless youre VERY close to someone, these things are NONE OF THEIR BUSINESS 

[+ FreshFluff]

Has Crumbl come out as a private equity company?

[maninsoma]

Well, you cannot have it both ways.  I wish that being gay was a "who cares/none of anyone else's business" situation.  I thought we were moving that direction as a country with increasing support of letting gay people just life their lives, but the conservative backlash has brought back the need for gay people to speak up about who they are.  Who knows -- the Supreme Court may end up taking up Kim Davis' case or another similar one and the right to same sex marriage can be eliminated.  

[+ MikeThomas]

I worked for a large money center bank. I never explicitly came out as gay. I just assumed everybody knew I was gay. I had no wife, and I would talk about my travel with my friends.  I guess when I joined the LGBTQ executive committee that was a giveaway 😂.  No one ever asked me if I was gay.

I remember back in the early 90s, before there was DEI, I attended a diversity training class at work. I can’t remember the context, but one of the people in the class said that when he thought of homosexuality he thought it was dirty. I came out in that small group and politely objected. The guy called me up a couple of days later and we went for lunch and had a long conversation which I think actually helped him gain a better understanding of what it is to be gay.  He really wanted to understand.

 

[+ Charlie]

I was never in the closet at work--I was a college professor--but no one I worked with actually asked whether I was gay (I think they may have taken it for granted, because I lived in the center of the city with another man). When I proposed to teach an elective class in gay literature, the department chair didn't ask about my qualifications, but he wondered whether anyone would sign up for it, so I said, "We won't know until we announce it, will we?" So we did. To my surprise, most of the students who signed up for it were straight (or claimed to be) but curious about the subject. A young woman who was a student in a previous class of mine was the only person who asked me--privately--if I were gay, so of course I said yes, and she signed up. To my relief, enough students signed up for the course to run it, and on the first day of class I expected that someone would raise a hand and ask if I were gay, but no one did.  We were a couple of weeks into the class when I was explaining something,  a student raised his hand and asked, "How do you know so much about that?" so I matter-of-factly replied, "Well, I'm gay myself."  A few students exchanged knowing looks with one another, but no one said anything about my answer. By the end of the semester, only one student had dropped out, and the question of my orientation never arose again in class.

[Ali Gator]

5 minutes ago, Charlie said:

 By the end of the semester, only one student had dropped out, and the question of my orientation never arose again in class.

Are you saying they dropped out because they found out you were gay ? (I hope not). 

[+ Charlie]

8 minutes ago, Ali Gator said:

Are you saying they dropped out because they found out you were gay ? (I hope not). 

Only one drop-out from a course was a very low rate. I don't know why the student dropped out.

[Ali Gator]

I don't think it's right to 'out' anyone regarding any identity (sexual, political, religious, etc.). They will let the public know what they want the public to know about themselves. 

I think the biggest faux pas was when Rosie O'Donnell (of all people) outed Clay Aiken on 'The View'. If you all remember, during the 2006-07 season, Clay Aiken (who was not out) was a guest host with Kelly Ripa, subbing one day for Regis. He did quite a bit to annoy Kelly, including putting his hand over her mouth to shut her up in one interview they were doing. Kelly got mad and said "Don't ever do that again. I don't know where that hand has been."

Rosie gets into the act the next day as she brings it up for 'Hot Topics' and blames Kelly for being a homophobe. "I think if it was a straight man who did that, she wouldn't have a problem with it."  WOW! So Rosie just outed 'her close friend' Clay Aiken on national TV that morning.

Kelly calls into the show and tells Rosie she had no idea if Aiken was straight or gay. All she knows is that he shook hands with everyone in the audience during the commercial breaks, and he put his hand over her mouth and nose to shut her up - which was disrespectful in itself. But to do it after shaking hands with everyone (and not washing right after) -- she didn't want any flu or cold germs spread to her and for her to take them home to her family (she had three little kids at the time). Kelly was right. ROSIE was so wrong, and was bashed in all the press for outing Aiken. Poor Clay.

[caramelsub]

48 minutes ago, Ali Gator said:

I don't think it's right to 'out' anyone regarding any identity (sexual, political, religious, etc.). They will let the public know what they want the public to know about themselves. 

I think the biggest faux pas was when Rosie O'Donnell (of all people) outed Clay Aiken on 'The View'. If you all remember, during the 2006-07 season, Clay Aiken (who was not out) was a guest host with Kelly Ripa, subbing one day for Regis. He did quite a bit to annoy Kelly, including putting his hand over her mouth to shut her up in one interview they were doing. Kelly got mad and said "Don't ever do that again. I don't know where that hand has been."

Rosie gets into the act the next day as she brings it up for 'Hot Topics' and blames Kelly for being a homophobe. "I think if it was a straight man who did that, she wouldn't have a problem with it."  WOW! So Rosie just outed 'her close friend' Clay Aiken on national TV that morning.

Kelly calls into the show and tells Rosie she had no idea if Aiken was straight or gay. All she knows is that he shook hands with everyone in the audience during the commercial breaks, and he put his hand over her mouth and nose to shut her up - which was disrespectful in itself. But to do it after shaking hands with everyone (and not washing right after) -- she didn't want any flu or cold germs spread to her and for her to take them home to her family (she had three little kids at the time). Kelly was right. ROSIE was so wrong, and was bashed in all the press for outing Aiken. Poor Clay.

Clay was wrong for putting his hand on Kelly’s mouth. That was just disgusting. Women don’t like getting their make up smeared or messed up. Plus if she’s anything like me, I’m kind of a germaphobe. Clay had it coming for him. If I remember correctly she said “I don’t know where that hand has been-Honey”. The honey part I think added to the gay insinuation. As some gays call girls or other gay guys honey as a term of endearment.

Edited 5 hours ago by caramelsub

[caramelsub]

Not to change the subject, but speaking of American Idol. I always thought this clip was funny of Kathy Griffin making a gay closet joke to Ryan Seacrest.

 

 

[+ purplekow]

On 8/29/2025 at 7:31 AM, caramelsub said:

It is none of their business I agree. In a workplace setting, only one person has ever asked me point blank if I was gay.(I won’t tell you how I responded 😉). He was straight, and wasn’t trying to hit on me.

If someone asked you in a professional/workplace setting, if you are gay, or in your case bisexual, how would you respond? I’m just genuinely curious.

I would likely say.  Why are you asking me out on a date?  or more graphic depending on the situation.  

[Ali Gator]

34 minutes ago, caramelsub said:

Clay was wrong for putting his hand on Kelly’s mouth. That was just disgusting. Women don’t like getting their make up smeared or messed up. Plus if she’s anything like me, I’m kind of a germaphobe. Clay had it coming for him. If I remember correctly she said “I don’t know where that hand has been-Honey”. The honey part I think added to the gay insinuation. As some gays call girls or other gay guys honey as a term of endearment.

I agree 100% and said so above. What he did was wrong and disrespectful. What Rosie did was worse. And then she tried to spin it when the media bashed her. IIRC Clay had just did an interview with Walters and his sexuality came up (she asked men 'if they wanted to address the gay rumors' often - including Ricky Martin). He deflected from the question. A few months later Rosie outs him on national TV - Walters' show of all places ? Geez, Rosie.

This was a BIG win for Kelly Ripa, and from that day forward she has yet to speak to Rosie, and Rosie still talks about it - "I saw Kelly Ripa at the Broadway opening of XXX last night. I said 'Hey, Kel, how ya doin?' and she walked right by me. She sure can hold a grudge'.

No Rosie - no grudge.  Kelly just doesn't want to associate with you any more. Can't blame her.