He was the face of BYU athletics, though he hid behind a mask as Cosmo the Cougar. Charlie Bird entertained crowds and gained national notoriety through his dance moves. But Bird writes that he had another mask he was hiding behind.
In an op-ed published in the Deseret News, Bird revealed he is gay and he hid his sexual orientation during his time performing as Cosmo from 2015 to 2018. Bird, who attended BYU after serving a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said when he attended school and performed as Cosmo, he realized his sexual orientation was an integral part of him.