John Elway at 50: Your biggest fan isn't gay, but he loves you anyway

Today, John Elway officially turns fifty, but the celebration's been going on for over a week, with Rascal Flatts playing a special show to celebrate Big John's latest landmark. That prompted a gusher of love on Elway's Facebook page, with a note from No. 7 prompting a confession of man...

By Michael Roberts

June 28, 2010

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "12017618",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "17242653",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261320",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "18838239",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "17261321",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        }
      ]

Today, John Elway officially turns fifty, but the celebration's been going on for over a week, with Rascal Flatts playing a special show to celebrate Big John's latest landmark. That prompted a gusher of love on Elway's Facebook page, with a note from No. 7 prompting a confession of man love that definitely isn't gay -- not that there's anything wrong with it.

On June 21, after the first rush of happy birthday wishes, Elway wrote:

If I knew everybody was going to be so nice about turning 50, I would have done it a long time ago. Thanks for all the birthday wishes. The real day is actually coming up, that was just the party. Maybe I'll have another one though.

This last line almost instantly prompted one Facebook friend to write, "Please invite me John!!!" More warm thoughts followed -- over 200 to date. Here's arguably the funniest to date:

MY DAD I YOUR BIGGEST FAN he has ALL your shirts he is also in denver im not but he is your #1 fan he has the movie john elways greatest pplays or somethin so am i but he isnt gay just a huge fan!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Relax: I doubt anyone would assume your dad is gay just because he's a rabid Elway lover. Besides, he's into Raiders cheerleaders these days. So no reason to overcompensate with exclamation points.

KEEP WESTWORD FREE... Since we started Westword, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Denver, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.

Michael Roberts began his career with Westword in 1990 as music editor. In 1999, he took on a new role, full-time media reporter, as author of a column called The Message. In 2008, he became the lead writer for Westword's news blog, The Latest Word, a position he held until January 2023. Michael continues to freelance for Westword, covering everything from business to sports and the media; he also contributes to Jazziz, a national music magazine. He holds a bachelor's degree from what is now Colorado Mesa University and master's degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles, and Northwestern University.

Contact: Michael Roberts

Follow:

Facebook: 111180895657427

Twitter: @mikerobertscolo