Celeb Gay Cards Revoked?

We are so enamored with stars who play gay or even a gay man's best friend, but for how long? Is there an expiration date on our devotion?

Take Debra Messing. A lot of my friends couldn't get enough of her when she was on Will & Grace. But once Will & Grace ended, she fell off our gay radar. It's not that we turned on her. It's just that we lost interest.

Maybe it hurts that she didn't play gay but rather a gay man's best friend.

Then again, her Will & Grace co-star Megan Mullally, who also played a gay man's best friend on the show, has a free pass for life when it comes to gay adoration. At least according to my circle of friends.

My informal poll also found that Jake Gyllenhall has earned a lifetime of worship thanks to Brokeback Mountain, and Hilary Swank will be forever beloved because of Boys Don't Cry. Queer As Folk god Gale Harold is also in for eternity.

I didn't even have to ask about Barbra Streisand, Elizabeth Taylor, Madonna and Cyndi Lauper. These women have achieved a supreme level of gay adoration and really don't need to do a thing beyond what they've already done to hold onto their special place in our hearts.

But Sean Hayes really needs to do something to win us back because we don't think of him much these days, according to my survey. This is ironic given the fact that he is rumored to actually be one of us, although he doesn't discuss his sexual orientation, and he played a gay man on Will & Grace. Maybe there is some resentment on our part?

Eric McCormack is another one who needs to boost his gay popularity battery, my circle says. Yes, he played gay on Will & Grace, but who really thinks about him these days? Seriously, is Eric on any gay person's list of favorite all-time stars?

And what about Gina Gershon of Bound fame? I know many lesbians will argue with me on this one, but two of my lesbian friends insist that Gina is teetering of the edge of being able to say "I have a big gay following" and really needs to do something to maintain our interest in her.

Meanwhile, Antonio Banderas and Tom Hanks, who won our hearts with their portrayals of gay men in Philadelphia, aren't so much on our radar these days. Any status they achieved in our community thanks to that groundbreaking film seems to have faded over the years.

We are a fickle bunch, aren't we?

So what do you think? Do you agree that stars like Debra Messing have lost their gay following? If so, why, and what can they do to regain it? And who in your mind has achieved a supreme level of gay adoration that will never fade?