June 25

 Georgios Kyriacos Panayiotou's Birthday
 

Back in the 1980s when the short-lived, ambisexual, glam- rock movement was dying, a perceived savior appeared on the scene that brought back a more masculine persona that ushered in the new sexpop scene.  The savior sold over 100 million albums worldwide, and has had ten albums reach the Billboard 200.

George's  ultra- masculine persona stirred passion in many hearts and loinsafter his hit single "I Want Your Sex" from his best-selling solo album Faith (1987)  which won a Grammy for Best Album , but which resulted in a and a BBC ban on the song which  was also banned by many radio stations on both sides of the Atlantic, but later used in the film the Beverly Hills Cop 2 (1987).

"I Want Your Sex" also became a dominant addiction in George's personal life as well. Nearly all of his female fans, including Princess Diana, were in shock when California police arrested him  in 1988  for "lewd behaviour in a public lavatory." In an MTV interview, George later stated: "I got followed into the restroom and then this cop—I didn't know it was a cop, obviously—he started playing this game, which I think is called, 'I'll show you mine, you show me yours, and then when you show me yours, I'm going to nick you!"

However, there were obvious signs of his sexual preference  when he dedicated his 1996 Album, "Older"  to his lover Anselmo Feleppa  who subsequently died from AIDS.  After Anselmo died, George took a new partner, Kenny Goss, with whom he had planned an over-the-top wedding ceremony similar to that between Elton John and  David Furnish . But that was called off  by Kenny in 2006 when George was photographed by News of the World  tabloid in  engaging in anonymous public sex in London's Hampstead Heath with .58-year-old Norman Kirtland, a somewhat portly, unemployed van driver. When News International chairman James Murdoch had declared in July 2011t hat  the company had decided to shut down the News of the World in the wake of its alleged involvement in a hacking scandal that triggered an outrage in Britain, George was quoted as saying that it was " a fantastic day for Britain."

George also suffered several drug arrests. Some of the more recent were 2010 when George was returning from the Gay Pride parade. and arrested on suspicion of being unfit to drive after reports that a car had crashed into a building. Several weeks
later he was charged with possession of marijuana  and with driving while unfit through drink or drugs.

So lets celebrate George's birthday by listening to "I Want Your Sex" and sipping what must be one of his favorite drinks - the ever-popular (in some circles) Liquid Sex Cocktail. We also suggest tracking down one of George's few recorded TV appearances on The Catherine Tate Show Xmas Special (2007)