The Reluctant Icon: Chaz Bono

Few stories caused as much tabloid frenzy in 2009 as Chaz Bono’s gender transition. On June 11, a few months after Bono’s 40th birthday, TMZ broke the news that the only child of Sonny Bono and Cher, once known as Chastity, is “becoming a man.”

“Chaz is really at peace with his decision,” Hollywood publicist Howard Bragman, who represents Bono, tells The Advocate. “Something he’s dreamed about is finally happening.”

Other than a few public appearances and a photo shoot with Out magazine, Bono has yet to grant a major interview with the press to talk about his life as an openly transgender man—Bragman says don’t expect to hear anything from his client until 2011, when Bono’s memoir, tentatively titled Coming Clean, is slated for release by Dutton publishing. A documentary about the transition is also “in the works.” Bono, in the meantime, is taking hormones, undergoing surgery, and finishing up his bachelor’s degree at a college in Los Angeles, where he lives.

Cher, who had known about Chaz’s decision for more than a year, told People magazine in June that her son “is embarking on a difficult journey, but one that I will support. I respect the courage it takes to go through this transition in the glare of public scrutiny, and although I may not understand, I will strive to be understanding... The one thing that will never change is my abiding love for my child.”