Rupert Everett. — Photo by CAMERA PRESS/Nicky Johnston

RUPERT EVERETT
Actor and Author, 53

"Rupert can't be anything but authentic," says Christine Ebersole, Everett's co-star in Blithe Spirit on Broadway in 2009. "It wouldn't fit a personality like his to keep anything hidden." Which explains why the actor came out publicly in 1989, a rare move at the time. Acting jobs dried up, but Everett, an Englishman who once played Julia Roberts' charming gay confidant in 1997's My Best Friend's Wedding, sees an upside: "I'm probably much happier. I may not be as rich or successful, but at least I'm vaguely free to be myself." Part of being himself has been as a writer. Everett has penned two books and written for Vanity Fair.

Colin Firth. — Photo by Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times/Contour by Getty Images

COLIN FIRTH
Actor, 51

A few facts about the handsome Brit, who played Pride & Prejudice's Mr. Darcy twice (first for the BBC, then on the silver screen) and won a Best Actor Oscar for The King's Speech.

Marital Status: He and his Italian wife, Livia, have two young sons.

Famous Ex-Girlfriend: He has an adult son with actress Meg Tilly (The Big Chill).

Why He Should Do More Comedy: Firth has dimples when he smiles.

Exotic Roots: Lived from infancy to age 4 in Nigeria, where his dad was teaching.

On His Looks: "Forget 'trying' to be sexy," he once said in an interview. "That's just gruesome."

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — Photo by Rodolfo Martinez

ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR.
Environmentalist, 58

Battling polluters has its upside. "I spend a lot of my time, often with my children, in some of the world's most beautiful landscapes — kayaking in Chile, camping all over the United States," says Kennedy, founder of the nonprofit Waterkeeper Alliance and chief prosecuting attorney for the Hudson Riverkeeper. The third child of Bobby and Ethel Kennedy, and nephew of President John Kennedy, is still an athlete, which is very much a family tradition. Last summer his generation beat the younger generation in touch football. "I've got nieces and nephews who are Olympic-class athletes," says the father of six (also a licensed falconer), "and we still beat them! We have veteran savvy!"

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