'J. Edgar Hoover was NOT gay!': FBI warned Clint Eastwood and Leonardo DiCaprio not to camp up portrayal of bureau chief in new film



Historians have for years speculated about the sexuality of the first FBI chief, J. Edgar Hoover, with some suggesting he was gay and enjoyed cross-dressing.

And with an upcoming movie about his life in the pipeline, it seems current bosses at the bureau were more than a little concerned about the whispers spreading.

When Clint Eastwood, who is directing the biopic, and Lionardo Dicaprio, who plays Hoover, met with bureau representatives to research the part, they were reportedly warned not to camp up the role.



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Friends: J. Edgar Hoover, right, and Tolson, who are said to have shared an intimate relationship - as lovers as well as friends

The FBI's assistant director Mike Kortan told them: 'Vague rumours and fabrications have cropped up from time to time, but there is no evidence in the historical record on this issue.'

He added that he merely passed on his expertise and that 'what they did with [the information], as with any production, has been entirely in their hands'.

The upcoming biopic about the first FBI director was written by Dustin Lance Black, who also wrote Milk, the Oscar-winning movie about the fight for gay rights in America.

As part of the film, Hoover's intimate relationship with his deputy and best friend Clyde Tolson has been examined.

There has been much speculation that the two may have been lovers as well as colleagues.

Faced with the wrath of the FBI, others may have wilted and given in.

Warned: Leonardo DiCaprio as J. Edgar Hoover in the upcoming biopic

But it appears Eastwood and his producer, Robert Lorenz, are made of sterner stuff - assuring bosses at the bureau simply that they would 'not give any credence to cross-dressing allegations' and would not portray Hoover's relationship with his friend as 'openly' homosexual.

'Though no one can know his private side with certainty, we hope that a thoughtful, intelligent portrayal of the man will put his life story in proper historical context,' they added, according to USA Today.

Under fire: Clint Eastwood has been warned against portraying Hoover as homosexual

Lionardo Dicaprio, meanwhile, is said to have been warned by one of Hoover's aides, Cartha DeLoach , that there was 'never any evidence of it whatsoever'.



DeLoach, who is now 91, added: 'I travelled with him, I ate in his home and he in mine.

'I knew Clyde Tolson to be Mr Hoover's companion and best friend. When you are somebody like Mr. Hoover, I guess you need somebody to talk to.'

Screenwriter Mr Black said the film would 'reflect what gay life was like' at the time.



He told USA Today: ' When I finished a draft I liked, and think I got to what the truth is, it’s a story that reflects what gay life was like pre-Stonewall, which was very different from what it looked like for Harvey Milk.



'That’s the script Clint and the studio read and I’ll tell you what - not only did Clint and the studio never cut or change a word, they never had a note about it.



'Clint said some things that were so incredibly moving that he understood the struggle young gays go through today. If anything, Clint made it even more human and universal.'

The FBI was not the only body to warn Eastwood not to portray Hoover as gay.

Close: Edgar Hoover and Clyde Tolson, left, attending a Joe Louis fight against Jack Sharkey at Yankee Stadium

He also received a note from William Branon, chairman of The J. Edgar Hoover Foundation, earlier this year.

'There is no basis in fact for such a portrayal of Mr. Hoover,' he wrote.



'To discount the truth and portray a sexual relationship between Mr. Hoover and Clyde Tolson would truly be a miscarriage of the facts and overshadow the many contributions of Mr. Hoover.'

He added that the initial allegations about Hoover's sexuality were ' spun by an author of questionable repute.'



