Bruce Jenner continues to be a role model. The former Olympian confirmed that he's transitioning from a male to a female during Diane Sawyer's 20/20 special on Friday, April 24. In the historic two-hour interview, he covered a variety of topics, including how his family reacted, when he began to cross-dress, what his three ex-wives knew, and more.
Read the 10 biggest revelations below:
1. The First Time He Tried on a Dress Was 8 or 9 Years Old
"I marked the closet so when I put it back, I had put everything back in the exact same spot so I wouldn't get caught. And at that time, I didn't know why I was doing it, besides it just made me feel good," the 65-year-old said of trying on his mother Esther's dresses. He would also sneak out in her clothes. "I would put a scarf over my head because my hair was short."
2. The First Person He Told Was First His Wife Chrystie Scott
The pair, who share son Burt and daughter Cassandra, were married from 1972 to 1981. "I didn't go heavily into it back then. I said, these are my issues, this is what I deal with. I think [I said], 'Oh I do a little cross-dressing, a little of this, a little of that," he told Sawyer. "Like most women they think, 'Oh I can fix that. I's going to be okay.' Nurturing. I never really hardcore said, 'Look, I don't know if I'm going to make it in this male gender here my entire life.'" (His second marriage with Linda Thompson failed partially because of his gender transition.)
3. His Gender Identity is Separate from His Sexual Orientation
"I was never attracted to the guys — the sexuality was totally different from what I'm dealing with. I'm not gay. As far as I know, I'm heterosexual. I've never been with a guy," he said. "Sexuality is who you're personally attracted to, who turns you on, male or female. But gender identity has to do with who you are as a person and your soul and who you identify with inside."
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4. His Sister Pam Jenner Kept His Secret for 30 Years
"He told me he had always felt that he should've been a girl. I said what? I couldn't believe it. I didn't understand it," she told Sawyer. "I didn't understand really what he was saying and then he told me, 'I used to dress up in your clothes when no one was around.' I gathered myself together. Okay, we can handle this. My big, gorgeous brother felt like he was always a girl."
5. He Began Transitioning in the '80s
Jenner would often cross-dress and converse with others following his motivational speeches. "I would walk off the stage and I would feel like a liar. I would say, 'You just got no guts,'" he told Sawyer. "And then literally [I would] go up into the hotel room, change clothes, and go out and walk around."
6. Kris Jenner and Him Might Still Be Together If It Weren't For His Transition
The star believes that he and the Kardashian matriarch, who share daughters Kendall and Kylie, might still be married if if weren't for his gender transition. (Kris filed for divorce in September 2014 after 22 years of marriage.) He also was on hormones when they first met and was a 36B bra size. "We never went to therapy. We tried to deal with it on our own," he said, noting that Kris caught him wearing dresses. "It was tough on her. Kris is a good woman I got no complaints with her. Honestly, if she would've been really good with it and understanding, we'd probably still be together."
7. His Daughters Caught Him Wearing Women's Clothes
Jenner said Kim Kardashian walked away and drove for a bit after she found him cross-dressing one time. He texted her to see if she was okay, but the two didn't speak much about it afterward. Kendall and Kylie's laptop, which was on security mode, also caught him changing. "They came home and turned on their computer and — oh my god, it was me," he recalled. "It was the only full-length mirror in the house."
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8. He Was Terrified to Tell His Children the Truth
Jenner struggled to tell his 10 children and stepchildren about his transition, and told son Brandon Jenner first. "[I said] that I'll always be there and I'm not going anywhere," he said. Brandon added to Sawyer: "I feel like I'm getting an upgraded version of my dad, of a parent." Kim has also been the most supportive, and it's been the toughest for Khloe Kardashian to deal with. He later commented on how he felt about hiding the truth while filming Keeping Up With the Kardashians. "I had the story. We've done 425 episodes I think, over almost 8 years now and the entire run I kept thinking to myself, 'Oh my god. This whole thing, the one real, true story in the family was the one I was hiding and nobody knew about it.'"
9. He Contemplated Suicide
One of Jenner's darkest moments was when it was leaked to paparazzi that he had plastic surgery to shave down his Adam's Apple in 2014. "I thought, wouldn't the easiest thing to do right now — and I could see where people get to that — is go in the room, get a gun, boom. Pain's over, it's done, go to a better place. And I thought, nah. I can't do something like that. I mean, I want to know how this story ends."
10. Sawyer's Interview Will Be Jenner's Last as Bruce
In time, Jenner — who said he's a Republican and Christian — will next reintroduce himself to society as a woman. "I'm saying goodbye to people's perception of me and who I am," he said. "I'm not saying goodbye to me because this has always been me." Sawyer also noted that the star did express interest to do another interview next year.
