Meet Evelyn, Andy Cohen's Beloved Mom Who Had a Hard Time after He Came out as Gay

Andy Cohen's mom, Evelyn, who experienced a difficult time after her son came out as gay, had some guidance for parents of gay youngsters.

Evelyn once released an "It's Get Better" video to honor National Coming Out Day. The clip isn't for closeted gay individuals, but for the parents' they may coming out to.

"The important thing is that you have to come to terms with it and you have to accept your child or your child will never feel good about himself or herself."

Evelyn Cohen and Andy Cohen at SUR Lounge on May 14, 2012 in Los Angeles, California | Photo: Getty Images

"The day I found out Andy was gay, I was shocked," Evelyn said. "At that time, things were really bad...There weren't any gay people that I knew."

"All I read about were the deaths in the New York Times of young men in their twenties dying from AIDS," she added. "I heard about the bathhouses. People were prejudiced and it was a terrible time. I thought, 'I don't know how we're going to get through this.'"

Evelyn was confused about what to do at the time, so she decided to seek advice from a good friend.

Evelyn Cohen and Andy Cohen at the SiriusXM studios on October 1, 2018 in New York City | Photo: Getty Images

She later realized that Andy was still the same person. The only difference was that her son could finally live sincerely and straightforwardly.

"I told this friend...'What am I gonna do? Andy is gay,' and she said, 'What do you mean what are you going to do? He was gay yesterday and he's the same person today. You just know a little more about him,'" she recalled.

Lou Cohen, Evelyn Cohen and Andy Cohen at The Empire State Building on June 1, 2018 in New York City | Photo: Getty Images

"If I was going to tell a mother today how to react to the knowledge that your son is gay," Evelyn added. "I would say mourn your loss — your loss of expectations that you had for your child or the way that you looked at him — and if you have prejudices...you need to confront it 'cause the only way to get rid of prejudices is by learning more about them..."

"The important thing is that you have to come to terms with it and you have to accept your child or your child will never feel good about himself or herself."

Evelyn has long been a big supporter of Andy's career.

“Andy was a magnetic personality from the time he was a little boy,” she said. “He brings this energy with him and makes people happy.”

Recently, Andy, who is the host and executive producer of the Bravo's late night talk show, "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen," celebrated his first birthday as a father with baby Benjamin.

The radio and television talk show host announced he would become a father in 2019 with the help of a surrogate in December 2018. He welcomed Benjamin on February 4, 2019.

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