1. Candle in the Wind

3.  was born in Pinner, Middlesex,
England
 March 25, 1947
 as Reginald Kenneth Dwight

4. o Elton John began
playing the piano in
1951 at the age of
4
o Who could’ve guessed
that his learning to
play the piano would
play such a major
role in the shaping of
LGBT society

6.  During the 70’s and 80’s
Elton John suffered
from drug addiction,
alcoholism and bulimia.
 These can be attributed
to the physical
manifestation of deep
rooted psychological
issues.
 The stress of hiding or
altering who you really
are can lead to issues
such as these.

8. Elton faced criticism for
marrying a woman. Many
questioned his true sexuality.

9. Elton John was good friends
with Freddie Mercury from
Queen. When Mercury died
from AIDS in 1991, Elton John
decided to use his celebrity
status to help others in the
LGBT community.

10. Established
the Elton
John AIDS
Foundation
in 1992

11.  Today the Elton John AIDS Foundation is one
of the worlds leading nonprofit HIV/AIDS
organizations.
 They support HIV prevention programs.
 They work at eliminating the discrimination
and stigma’s attached to HIV/AIDS.
 They offer support services to people living
with HIV/AIDS.
 Elton John serves as the Chief Fundraiser for
the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

12. Circa
1973

13.  Elton John is a pop musician who has remained
true to his character and his music.
 He has survived many of the music fads
throughout history.
 These simple actions have helped other LGBT
musicians to enter the mainstream music
industry.

16. Flamboyant costumes can be
attributed to being an
entertainer.
Some people will always
choose not to listen to or
purchase an artists music
because of his or her sexual
orientation.

18. In the 1994, Elton John
composed music for
Disney’s The Lion
King as well as
lending his voice for
the film.
The movie also became
a Broadway Musical
composed by Elton
John in 1998.
This is one example of
being accepted in the
mainstream media.

19.  In 1997 Elton John
wrote the song Candle in
the Wind in honor of the
late Princess Diana.
 This single became the
number 1 selling single of
all time.
 Over 33 million copies
sold.
 This raised 30 million
dollars for the Diana,
Princess of Wales,
Memorial Fund and is
used to continue the
Princess’ humanitarian
work.

20.  His efforts in this
fundraising earned Elton
John Knighthood on
February 24, 1998 from
Queen Elizabeth II
 This photo depicts
Princess Diana comforting
Elton John at Gianni
Versace’s funeral in 1997,
before she passed also.

21.  In March of 2005 Elton John assisted in creating the Billy Elliot the
Musical. Which is based on a true story from the 1980’s in County
Durham in northern England.
 This was originally a movie and tells the tale of a young boy who
desires to perform ballet instead of what is expected of young boys in
his era and location. Most were expected to become miners.
 Elton John wanted to share this tale of acceptance with the world and
feels deeply about the topic. He struggled because his father didn’t
accept the Rock-n-Roll path that he chose.
 In the link below Elton John shares some of his feelings about the
reasons for his interest in the Billy Elliot project.
 Elton John is an advocate for self expression.

22. Elton John and David Furnish enter a Civil Partnership

23.  Elton John continues to work on
HIV/AIDS awareness.
 He is also working on projects such
as Billy Elliot that promote
acceptance of all people no matter
why they are viewed as different in
society.

25. Information was gathered from:
www.eltonjohn.com
http://www.thebiographychannel.co.uk/biographi
es/elton-john.html
Music and video links are from:
www.youtube.com