Discovering the Sex Appeal of Redheads

A few weeks ago I was chatting with a fellow at my neighborhood bar, the Monster, and he happened to be a redhead.  However, because of the lighting I didn't realize this until a gregarious gentleman walked over and told him, "I could stare at your red pubes for hours."  With that established he sauntered off and my redheaded friend mentioned an event he happened upon in SoHo for a book titled Red Hot 100: The 100 Sexiest Red Hot Guys in the World, which celebrates sexy redheaded men.  (Click here for the book's website.)  This got me thinking about redheads, who generally aren't on my radar since Latinos and Mediterranean types get most of my attention.  For the most part I think of them as being more cute than sexy.  However, after looking through the pages of of sexy faces and hot bodies in Red Hot my perceptions changed.  And it was a relief to discover that not all redheads look like Carrot Top.

 

Redheads are a rare breed, apparently even more so than persons who are left handed or gay.  They come in varying shades, e.g., flaming orange, auburn, strawberry blonde and other variations, which seem to be referred to as "ginger".   A lot of times you may not know they are redheads until they grow a beard or you see them naked.  Despite my affinity for Latinos I wouldn't be averse to going out with a redhead.  (I can think of one I dated and another I slept with.)  

 

In no particular order, here is my top-10 list of Cutest/Sexiest Red Heads, three of whom who are gay and four are from the UK .

 

THE TEN CUTEST/SEXIEST REDHEADS

• Perhaps the most famous redhead is rascally Prince Harry.

 

 

• As far as athletes go, redheads seem to gravitate to hockey.  Andy Dalton, however, is the starting quarterback of the Cincinnati Bengals. 

 

 

• Comic actor Seth Green may be known best for playing Dr. Evil's son, Scott Evil, in the Austin Powers movies.

 

 

• Jesse Tyler Ferguson, one of the openly gay persons on this list, plays one of the gay daddies on Modern Family.  In my opinion he should have one of the Emmys won by his TV hubby, Eric Stonestreet.  Ferguson is known for his snappy bow ties, which he also sells through The Tie Bar (http://www.thetiebar.com).  All proceeds go to Tie the Knot, a same-sex marriage foundation. 

 

 

• Actor Michael Fassbender played a sex addict in Shame, a Spartan solider in 300, a British lieutenant in Inglorious Basterds and a sadistic plantation owner in 12 Years A Slave (for which he received an Oscar nomination for Supporting Actor).

 

 

• Actor John Benjamin Hickey won a Tony for his role in The Normal Heart.  Like Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Hickey is openly gay.

 

 

• British actor Damian Lewis is best known for his Emmy-winning role in the Showtime series Homeland.

 

 

• Actor Dash Mihok was raised in Greenwich Village and grew up in the Westbeth Artists apartments on Bank St.  He's had small roles in a number of movies I've seen (The Guru; I Am Legend; Silver Linings Playbook), but I don't recall seeing him.  

 

 

• Best known for his role as Dr. Owen Hunt on Grey's Anatomy for the past eight seasons, Scottish actor Kevin McKidd has also appeared in the TV series movie and as Poseidon in the movie Percy Jackson & the Olympians.

 

 

• Finally, singer/actor Anthony Rapp is the third openly gay entry on this list.  He gained attention when he appeared in Rent, but I remember him from his first movie role when he was a teenager, 1987's Adventures in Babysitting.

 

 

And although Red Hot 100 is all about men, here is a a shout-out to some stunning women who are redheads (who were easier for me  to think of off the top of my head than the men): Julianne Moore (right); Emma Stone; Marcia Cross; Jessica Chastain; Nicole Kidman; and Debra Messing.