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[Drag][LGBTQ][Theater and Performance] Drag performance and female impersonation ephemera documenting mid twentieth century queer nightlife and theatrical entertainment in the United States. Materials span the 1950s through the early 1980s and include promotional pieces, programs, and magazines associated with prominent drag performers and venues including Charles Pierce, Jim Bailey, T C Jones, Club My O My in New Orleans, and the 82 Club in New York. These entertainers and venues formed part of a network of nightlife spaces where gender performance and queer identity developed public visibility decades before the broader cultural acceptance of drag entertainment. Club My-O-My, a major venue for female impersonators in New Orleans is featured with programs and postcards identifying the entertainers. The archive also includes the 82 Club in New York, legendary drag artist T.C. Jones at the Huntington Hartford Theatre, Jim Bailey's celebrity impersonation act, Charles Pierce at The Plush Room, and a Tangents benefit performance of The Women starring drag queens as the main characters. Archive of thirteen printed items dating from the 1950s through 1982, including tourist brochures, postcards, three Club My-O-My programs, show programs, advertisements, and magazines documenting drag entertainment across New Orleans, New York, Hollywood, and San Francisco. [1] "See New Orleans" Brochure for Bill Hayes Sightseeing Tours. New Orleans: ca. 1950s. Tri-fold tourist brochure advertising the "Gay Night Tour" of New Orleans' French Quarter, with stops at "clubs where they feature Dixie-land Jazz" and most notably, "female impersonators" with a photo of performer Jimmy Callaway. The euphemistic language reflects the era's simultaneous fascination with and marginalization of gender non-conformity. Pitches the tour as "A Visit to Some of Our Best Clubs" and includes the tagline "This is a Tour for Broadminded People." [2] Club My-O-My Program. New Orleans: Club My-O-My, ca. 1950s. 6 x 9.5 inches. Mardi Gras Greetings program with a line drawing of a male performer holding a wig captioned "I'm a HE . . . not a she." Back cover advertises Club My-O-My as "New Orleans' Most Unusual Nite Club", and Mr. Johnny Brown billed as "Style and Grace, the Lovely Face" and "Club My-O-My's Favorite MC." [3] Club My-O-My Program. New Orleans: Club My-O-My, ca. 1950s. 6 x 9.5 inches. Mardi Gras Greetings program with Mr. Jimmy Callaway pictured as "Planet Record Star and Featured Attraction." Back cover advertises three nightly shows and Mr. Billy De Voe billed as "Park Avenue Hillbilly" and "Master of Ceremonies" [4] Club My-O-My Program. New Orleans: Club My-O-My, ca. 1950s. 9.5 x 12 inches. Larger program headed "Mr. Pat Waters" and "The World's Most Beautiful Boys In Women's Attire," with Mr. Jimmy Callaway pictured as "Master of Ceremonies" and described as "Risque, Terrific, Sweet . . . Your Favorite and Mine . . . Sensational Song Stylist." Back cover advertises Club My-O-My as "New Orleans' Most Unusual Nite Club," gives showtimes of 10:00, 12:00, and 2:00 nightly with Saturday and holiday performances continuing to 3:00, lists reservation phone Evergreen 4431, and features Mr. Gene La Marr as "Cuba's Famous Soprano and America's No. 1 Female Impersonator . . . Appearing Nightly." [5] T.C. Jones in Mask and Gown. Huntington Hartford Theatre, Hollywood: The Playgoer, 1958. Program from T.C. Jones' starring role in a musical revue, one of the few female impersonators to gain commercial success in mainstream theater. Credits include musical staging by Jim Russell and musical direction by Dorothea Freitag. T.C. Jones helped normalize drag performance as Broadway-adjacent revue, with this production showcasing the theatrical crossover potential of drag in the 1950s. [6] Cabaret Magazine. Vol. 1, No. 10. Skokie, IL: February 1956. Features the article "How Men Become Female Impersonators" by R. Cushing Smith, detailing backstage preparations by drag artist.
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