In Honor of Labor Day: nine gay blue collar characters

It's not to hard to find gay characters who work in the arts or as teachers, doctors, bartenders and as assistants, but blue collar gay characters don't come up nearly as often. In honor of the upcoming Labor Day holiday in the U.S., let's take a look at some of those blue collar gay characters that have graced the big and small screen.

Ennis del Mar and Jack Twist
From: Brokeback Mountain

A look at gay characters who put in a day's hard work could never overlook the sheep herders who spurred the discussion of gay relationships like never before in 2005. Working outdoors for a summer under the endless Wyoming sky, the two forged a bond that couldn't be severed by time or distance.

Ivan Jones
From: Emmerdale

Having just learned about him, I can't ignore the hunky bisexual garbage man from Brit soap Emmerdale. Ivan struggled with his feelings for Paul, only to have the relationship thwarted by Paul's step-sister. Did you know that they're called "binmen" there? I wonder if "binman" has less unpleasant connotation than "garbage man" does.

Jeff Mitchelland Greg
From: The Sum of Us

This 1994 comedy gave us Russel Crowe as a gay plumber who lived with a father that couldn't be shocked by his son's sex life. Crowe's character, Jeff, makes a connection with one of his dates, Greg, a gardener, though Jeff requires pressure from his father before finally pursuing the relationship.

Leon Carp
From: Roseanne

When Martin Mull first appeared as Leon, he managed the department store coffee shop Roseanne Conner worked at and the two constantly bickered with the usual labor/management conflicts. Later in the series, Leon returned when Roseanne began running a diner and Leon began to see the job from Roseanne's point of view. Upping the gay quotient of the series, lesbian character Nancy Bartlett (Sandra Bernhard) also worked at the dinner and they would sometimes poke fun at their straight co-workers. Further down the road, we saw Leon marry his boyfriend Scott who, in a touch of casting genius, was played by Mull's Fernwood 2Nite co-star Fred Willard.

Nino Paventi
From: Mambo Italiano

In this Canadian comedy, Angelo, the son of Italian immigrants struggles with coming out to his parents. He finally does so after encountering a boyhood crush, Nino, and they decide to move in together. Nino, now a policeman, wants to stay in the closet, which isn't possible once Angelo tells his parents about their relationship — word travels quickly in their community. The revelation eventually breaks the two up as Nino, who gets teased by other police officers, would rather return to the closet.

Doug Witter
From: Dawson's Creek

Throughout most of the run of Dawson's Creek we weren't sure if Pacey's comments about his brother's repressed homosexuality was sibling taunting or a sign that the police officer was in denial about his sexual orientation. In the series finale, however, we saw Doug was in a relationship with Jack McPhee.

Butch Gamble
From: Normal, Ohio

There was a lot of hope as Fox sitcom Normal, Ohio was getting ready to debut with its mid-western setting and a "beer-swilling, sports-loving, blue-collar" gay lead character played by John Goodman. Would Normal defy the numerous gay characters who lived in cities and worked white-collar or service industry jobs? Unfortunately, the show turned out to be unfunny with punchlines that played upon stereotypes. It was gone by mid-season.

Steelworkers at the Ajax Steel Mill
From: The Simpsons

In the classic "Homer's Phobia", Homer is shocked to learn that the new family friend (voiced by John Waters) is gay and begins to worry that Bart might have caught the gayness. He attempts to straighten Bart out by taking him to a steel mill where he can meet some "real men" — only to realize that all of the steelworkers there were gay. Later when Homer relives the experience over a Duff beer, Mo tells him, "The entire steel industry is gay. Aerospace too — and the railroads."