$5-Million Award to Lover of Rock Hudson Upheld

An appeals court upheld a $5-million award to the former homosexual lover of actor Rock Hudson, ruling that the sum is not too large to compensate for “the ultimate in personal horror,” the fear of developing AIDS.

In a decision released Monday, the California 2nd District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles rejected arguments by Hudson’s estate that Marc Christian failed to show a likelihood that he contracted the AIDS virus during sexual relations with Hudson.

A jury ruled in February, 1989, that Hudson was guilty of “outrageous conduct” for concealing his AIDS diagnosis from Christian, his lover for two years. Christian said he did not learn of the actor’s illness until a few months before Hudson, 58, died on Oct. 2, 1985. Although Christian did not contract AIDS and had tested negative for the presence of the virus, the judge and jury found he deserved damages. Hudson’s estate appealed.