I know this topic is old, but I guess I'll respond, anyway.
I have a strange feeling that the OP didn't see enough episodes. There were plenty of references to CNR being gay, but they were very veiled.
For example, in one episode, a large group of people in the audience yelled, "Hi, Charles!" Gene Rayburn went, "Wow, Charles! You have a lot of friends." Then the audience went, "Hi, Charles!" for a second time. Rayburn addressed the crowd and said, "Now, the women!"
There was dead silence, and everyone laughed hysterically, because the implication was that men were CNR's only fans.
IMDB, flagging ppl for bull
since 1995.

I've been watching reruns of Match Game religiously on GSN for the past two years, and I can tell you that everyone refers to Charles' s homosexuality, but very subtly. As a kid in the seventies it all went over my head. LOL.

The game with a partner was TattleTales.

This topic really used to confuse me on the Match Game. Doesn't anybody remember when CNR appeared with his "partner" at the time ELIZABETH ALLEN?!!
They would say affectionate things to each other like "My Doll," and affected exactly like they were a couple. (Was it "Match Game" that required a "couple" or another game?) Anyway, I was a kid, very naive, and even I thought that that Charles acted pretty effeminate to be sexually involved with Elizabeth Allen. (At least "Elizabeth Allen" was the name I remember. Her first name was definitely Elizabeth and she was an actress, probably around Charles's age.)
Doesn't anyone remember this?
Anyway, Rest in Peace, Charles.
You brought us a lot of laughs
Flanagan

There is a clip on You Tube where CNR sneezes on Gene Rayburn and Gene says something to CNR like "Great, now I'm going to catch what you have." CNR looks at him and says "Not dressed like that you aren't."
I burst out laughing at that
Never get involved in a land war in Asia

There is a clip on You Tube where CNR sneezes on Gene Rayburn and Gene says something to CNR like "Great, now I'm going to catch what you have." CNR looks at him and says "Not dressed like that you aren't." That broke up Gene Rayburn. Very funny stuff and yes, they knew.

Charles was a delight to watch on Match Game, and he was also very witty.
Mommy to two little monsters

I knew Charles well & yes he was out at that time. Remember, he could not only dish it out but he could take it also.
Charles did what had to be done to make every project he worked on a success. We all took a beating back then. He just wanted "Match Game" to be a success; just like he was!!!

Right. He did Paul Lynde impressions. He was quite good at it too.
"Have you ever had an Egyptian Feast?"

I always thought Dawson was impersonating Paul Lynde specifically, not gay people in general. Right?

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I have to agree with the comment of the poster who said Richard Dawson could deliver a convincing stereotypical gay persona on occasion for laughs. He did it often in his prime years on Match Game. I think he did a better job than even CNR. Of course, he started cutting it out when he started hosting Family Feud on the side. Watch GSN on occasion and you might see Dawson's dead-on portrayal.
CNR had that dead giveaway grin on his face that didn't hide anything.

Fascinating awesome thread bump!

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one of the episodes that was on tonight, brett said she changed her mind as she was writing a second card. two questions later, as gene was headed back towards the contestants, charles says "i changed my mind" and gene answered "well, that's a woman's perogative."

It always b68is a fine line, a strip that folds back on itself, between flaming gay guy and ladies man - they really act and behave similar. I guess since it's mostly peacocking. The majority of men gay and straight don't behave like that.

Did that incident with Fannie Flagg really happen? See, I don't like Brett Somers. She always comes across as being genuinely mean-spirited. I usually just try to ignore her and watch the panelists I do like, especially my favourite: Charles Nelson Reilly.
Every episode I've seen has contained a lot of innuendo - at least half of which comes from CNR himself - about his sexuality. I think I've just always recognised that he was gay because of
Match Game
.
He definitely did rock, and he will definitely be missed!

The most obvious one I remember is when the question was:
"You may not know this, but I heard that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are BLANK."
The contestant answers "Gay". While the audience's laughter is dying down, Brett leans over to Charles and says, "Some people ARE, you know!"
So rofl-worthy.

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I've noticed that in some episodes Charles is really "up" and funny and that's when some of the jokes betw Brett, Gene & Charles veer as close towards gay humor as you were going to get in 70s daytime TV, but in other episodes Charles is more subdued and perhaps not in such a good mood, and his friends seem to pick up on it and stay away from the gay innuendos for the time being.
Anyway, I always figured that it must have been quite frustrating to be someone who is so naturally funny and entertaining and silly, but to have to restrain oneself so much in order to conform to the restrictive guidelines of broadcast TV (and society in general) of the times in which this series was being made.
All I know is that if CNR is on any given
Match Game
episode, we definitely stick around and watch it, but if he's away for the day, well, then, we just might skip it.
btw:
non-judgement day is near

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While this doesn't really mean whether Charles was "out" or not, one of my favorite lines of the entire show and got both Brett and Gene pretty much rolling:
Charles: What's the biggest fruit you can get, present company excluded?
"Blood is simply the soul's tear"

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The world was a different place back then.. CNR was about as out as anyone could have been without being fired. He was trying to walk that thin line between being "out" (which wasn't even a word we used back then) and being "employed"