Jason Collins

Jason Collins

What Michael Sam did in football, Jason Collins did in basketball. Collins was the first man to come out as gay during his active career in any of the major US men's sports. He was playing for the Boston Celtics in 2013 when he chose to speak to Sports Illustrated magazine and reveal his sexuality, but he'd been quietly supporting the LGBT community for years; his choice of the number 98 for his jersey was a reference to the homophobic murder of Matthew Shepard in 1998.

Collins' career didn't last long after his announcement; he played on for only one more year, although he was 36 at the time and age may have been a factor. When he signed on with the Brooklyn Nets in 2014 to play his final season, his replica jersey became the top-selling item in the whole NBA online store, which was a fantastic tribute to his bravery.

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Did You Know...

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Chefs made their way into celebrity land a while ago. But how many celebrities that weren’t trained as professional cooks are actually whizzes in the kitchen? Here are several that come to mind.

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Actress Julia Roberts is confident about her cooking skills. “I’m quite a good cook,” she told E! News. “I’m like a closet home ec teacher…I can really cook anything.” Roberts has said she often cooks fish for herself and her kids. And speaking of her three children, “They think that I’m a good cook,” Roberts told People. “They actually told me that I should open a restaurant.” She also relishes cooking for the holidays, particularly shredded Brussel sprouts. Roberts hasn’t published a cookbook, but we did find recipes attributed to her for peach crisp and banana hemp muffins. Or you can make the same summer salad the actress supposedly eats.

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Chrissy Teigen started off as a supermodel. Then her love of cooking filtered into her professional life too. At this point, she’s created recipes for a limited Blue Apron release and also just launched her own home and cooking line at Target named “Cravings,” after the two cookbooks she’s released. Teigen describes cooking as “a time of peace” for herself. So maybe peace out to her tuna melt sandwich or the fried chicken wings that are a favorite of her husband, John Legend.

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Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, comes from a cooking Italian family. Her father started his own restaurant in New York and also published a cookbook. And apparently, Lady Gaga has inherited the family’s cooking genes. Her Instagram account occasionally features photos of her culinary activities. Sure, sometimes it’s topless cooking. But other times it’s more poignant like in the post she shared about her bringing food to the family of her dear friend who passed away. Want to try a Gaga/Germanotta family favorite? Check out her recipe for whole wheat pasta with a sweet fennel sauce.

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