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Bizarre

Fooling the Heteros…
Vintage Drag Queens

I do love a good drag show, although I think the current trend towards exaggerated makeup, hair, and clothing takes away from the simple beauty of a man dressed as a woman. Back in the day, the more realistic your drag costume, the better; acts like Bert Savoy and The Rocky Twins made their fame through their very realistic drag, and part of their appeal was their ability to fool the men in the crowd. They were less drag and more trans. I stumbled on some photos (which may or may not be photoshopped) of Victorian men in drag, and that led me to Queer Music Heritage, a website dedicated to female impersonators from the past. In its pages, I found many gorgeous drag queens spanning the 20th century. Whatever we say about the kids today, our great-grandparents and grandparents were also up to something!

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Laverne Cummings

 

Barbette
Laverne Cummings
Julian Eltinge
Julian Eltinge
Bert Savoy
Bert Savoy
Adrian Ames
Adrian Ames
Chris Ames
Chris Ames
Bothwell Browne
Bothwell Browne
Bothwell Browne
Bothwell Browne
Gene La Marr
Gene La Marr
Chris Ames
Chris Ames
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Bobby DeCastro
Bobby DeCastro
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Frank Doran
Frank Doran
Frank Doran
Frank Doran
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Francis Russell
Francis Russell
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fm15
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Nicki Gallucci
Nicki Gallucci
Gita Gilmore
Gita Gilmore
Walter Hart
Walter Hart
The Rocky Twins
The Rocky Twins
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Image15
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Bobbie Janson
Bobbie Janson
Francis Renault
Francis Renault
Freddy Renault
Freddy Renault
Freddy Renault
Freddy Renault
Francis Renault
Francis Renault
Francis Renault
Francis Renault
Francis Renault
Francis Renault
Walter Hart
Walter Hart
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The Rocky Twins
The Rocky Twins
The Rocky Twins
The Rocky Twins
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Written By

Meghan MacRae grew up in Vancouver, Canada, but spent many years living in the remote woods. Living in the shadow of grizzly bears, cougars and the other predators of the wilderness taught her about the dark side of nature, and taught her to accept her place in nature's order as their prey. She is co-founder of CVLT Nation.

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