Crystal LaBeija
Crystal LaBeija (born 1930s, died 1990s) was an American drag queen and trans woman who founded the House of LaBeija in 1968. The House is often credited as starting the house system in ball culture. She became a mother figure for homeless LGBTQ youth. Career LaBeija originally worked and competed on the Manhattan drag circuit under the name of Crystal LaAsia, before changing her name to LaBeija as Latin queens kept calling her ''La Belleza'' (Spanish for "the beauty"). In the 1960s and 1970s, drag queens of color were expected to whiten their appearance to help their chances at winning competitions and they often faced racist environments. LaBeija was one of only a few African American drag queens to be awarded a "Queen of the Ball" title at a drag ball organized by whites during this era. In 1967, she was crowned Miss Manhattan. LaBeija subsequently competed in the 1967 Miss All-America Camp Beauty Pageant held in New York City Town Hall, a competition documented in ''The Que ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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The Queen (1968 Film)
''The Queen'' is a 1968 American documentary film directed by Frank Simon and narrated by Flawless Sabrina. It depicts the experiences of the drag queens organizing and participating in the 1967 Miss All-America Camp Beauty Contest held at New York City's Town Hall. The film was screened at the International Critics' Week section of the 1968 Cannes Film Festival; however, the festival was ultimately curtailed and ended due to ongoing civil unrest in France before any awards could be given out. First released in the United States in June 1968 to generally positive reviews, it was subsequently screened in France (November 1968), Netherlands (1969), Denmark (1969), and Finland (1969). The film was revived in January 2013 at New York Film Forum, followed by a 4K restoration screened during the 2019 Melbourne International Film Festival. In 2020, Kino Lorber released a Blu-ray of the restored version of ''The Queen'', with bonus additional footage, an interview with Flawless Sabrina, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Film Forum
Film Forum is a nonprofit movie theater at 209 West Houston Street in Greenwich Village, Manhattan. It began in 1970 as an alternative screening space for independent films, with 50 folding chairs, one projector and a $19,000 annual budget. Karen Cooper became director in 1972. Its current Greenwich Village cinema (on Houston Street, west of Sixth Avenue) was built in 1990. Film Forum is a 4-screen cinema open 365 days a year, with 280,000 annual admissions, nearly 500 seats, 60 employees, 4500 members and an operating budget of $5 million. Film Forum is the only autonomous nonprofit cinema in New York City and one of the few in the United States of America. In 1994, Film Forum was honored with a Village Award by the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation, even though it is technically in Soho. In 2018, Film Forum had a major renovation, adding new seats (and in turn, more leg room) and a fourth theater. Programming Film Forum presents two distinct film progra ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Drag Queen
A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have usually been gay men, and part of gay culture. People partake in the activity of ''doing drag'' for reasons ranging from self-expression to mainstream performance. Drag shows frequently include lip-syncing, live singing, and dancing. They occur at events like LGBT pride parades, carnivals and drag pageants and in venues such as cabarets and nightclubs. Drag queens vary by type, culture, and dedication, from professionals who star in films and spend a lot of their time in their drag persona, to people who do drag only occasionally. Those who do occasional drag may be from other backgrounds than the LGBT community. There is a long history of folkloric and theatrical crossdressing that involves people of all orientations. Not everyone who does drag at some point in the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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List Of LGBT People From New York City
New York City is home to one of the largest LGBT populations in the world and the most prominent. Brian Silverman, the author of ''Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day,'' writes that the city has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most powerful LGBT communities", and "Gay and lesbian culture is as much a part of New York's basic identity as yellow cabs, high-rises, and Broadway theatre". LGBT travel guide ''Queer in the World'' states, "The fabulosity of Gay New York is unrivaled on Earth, and queer culture seeps into every corner of its five boroughs". In 2022, LGBT advocate and entertainer Madonna stated metaphorically, “Anyways, not only is New York City the best place in the world because of the queer people here. Let me tell you something, if you can make it here, then you must be queer”; and comedian Jerrod Carmichael joked, "That's actually why I live here...if you say you're gay in New York, you can ride the bus for free and they just give you free pizza; ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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LGBT Culture In New York City
New York City is home to one of the largest LGBTQ populations in the world and the most prominent. Brian Silverman, the author of ''Frommer's New York City from $90 a Day,'' wrote the city has "one of the world's largest, loudest, and most powerful LGBT communities", and "Gay and lesbian culture is as much a part of New York's basic identity as yellow cabs, high-rise buildings, and Broadway theatre". LGBT travel guide ''Queer in the World'' states, "The fabulosity of Gay New York is unrivaled on Earth, and queer culture seeps into every corner of its five boroughs". LGBT advocate and entertainer Madonna stated metaphorically, “Anyways, not only is New York City the best place in the world because of the queer people here. Let me tell you something, if you can make it here, then you must be queer.” In 2022, comedian Jerrod Carmichael joked, "That's actually why I live here...if you say you're gay in New York, you can ride the bus for free and they just give you free pizza. ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Endless (Frank Ocean Album)
''Endless'' is a visual album by American singer Frank Ocean. It was released on August 19, 2016, as an exclusive streaming-only video on Apple Music, and preceded the August 20 release of Ocean's second studio album ''Blonde''. ''Endless'' was later remastered and had a limited reissue in physical audio and visual formats on April 10, 2018. The album followed a period of controversy for Ocean, who was in a highly publicized battle with Def Jam Recordings, and it was the subject of widespread media discussion upon release. ''Endless'' was recorded in various studios across California, as well as in London, Miami, and Berlin, with production handled primarily by Ocean, Vegyn, Michael Uzowuru, and Troy Noka; Ocean previously collaborated with Noka on his debut mixtape, ''Nostalgia, Ultra'' (2011). The film follows Ocean silently woodworking on a staircase while the audio plays. Music journalists have noted the album features a minimalist aesthetic with a loose musical structure and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Frank Ocean
Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean has won two Grammy Awards and a Brit Award for International Male Solo Artist among other accolades, and his two studio albums have been listed on ''Rolling Stone''s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2020). Ocean began his musical career as a ghostwriter, prior to joining the hip hop collective Odd Future in 2010. The following year, he released his first mixtape, '' Nostalgia, Ultra'', and subsequently secured a recording contract with Def Jam Recordings. His first studio album, the eclectic ''Channel Orange'' (2012), incorporated R&B and soul styles. At the 2013 Grammy Awards, ''Channel Orange'' was nominated for Album of the Year and won Best Urban Contemporary Album; one of its singles, " Thinkin Bout You", was nominated for R ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Legendary (TV Series)
''Legendary'' is an American voguing reality competition streaming television series, exploring the world of ball culture. It premiered on HBO Max on May 27, 2020. The series follows LGBT house members—predominantly from eight to ten houses—as they navigate through nine balls (dancing/voguing/walking events), with US$100,000 prize for the winning house. As such, the series was praised by GLAAD for featuring queer and trans artists "from the New York ballroom scene." In July 2020, HBO Max renewed the series for a second season. On April 17, 2021, HBO Max announced that the second season would premiere on May 6, 2021. In June 2021, HBO Max renewed the series for a third season. On April 27, 2022, HBO announced that the third season would premiere on May 19, 2022. In December 2022, HBO Max canceled the series after three seasons and removed it. Cast Each episode features a fashion and performance coaches responsible for polishing the houses' looks and moves on the dancefloor ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Snatch Game
Snatch Game is a challenge on the ''Drag Race'' reality competition television franchise. Beginning with the second season of the original American series ''RuPaul's Drag Race'', the challenge has taken place on every season since. It has also occurred on ''RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars'' since season 2, both seasons of ''RuPaul's Secret Celebrity Drag Race'', and on the Thai, British, Canadian,Joey Nolfi"Canada's Drag Race first look serves Canadian bacon with a side of fish" ''Entertainment Weekly'', May 19, 2020. Dutch, Australian-New Zealand, Spanish, Italian, French, and Filipino international installments. The Snatch Game typically parodies the game show ''Match Game'' (known as ''Blankety Blank'' in the UK and '' Blankety Blanks'' in Australia) and is a test of the contestants' skills at celebrity impersonation and improvisational comedy. Usually occurring about halfway through each ''Drag Race'' season, Snatch Game is commonly perceived as one of the most important and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Aja (entertainer)
Venus Nadya Oshun, known professionally as Aja LaBeija, better known mononymously as Aja () (born January 4, 1994) is an American rapper, reality television personality and drag queen best known for competing on the ninth season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' and on the third season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars''. Aja released her debut EP, ''In My Feelings'', in 2018, followed by her debut studio album, ''BOX Office'', in February 2019. Her second EP, ''ALL CAPS'', was released in June 2019. She released '' Nail in the Coffin'', a Halloween-themed EP, in collaboration with Shilow later that year. She recently starred as a contestant on the third season of ''Legendary'' on HBO Max, where she finished in 6th place with the House of LaBeija. Early life Aja was born on January 4, 1994, in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn. She was raised by adoptive parents. She used to suffer from PTSD and anxiety, attributing her to a "broken family" situation, but stopped having panic attacks afte ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars (season 3)
The third season of ''RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars'' began airing on January 25, 2018. The season was announced in August 2017, and 9 of the 10 cast members were revealed during a VH1 television special titled "Exclusive Queen Ruveal," which aired on October 20, 2017. This season featured ten "All Star" contestants, selected from the show's first season through to its ninth season, who competed to be inducted into the "''Drag Race'' Hall of Fame". As in the previous season, the top two queens in the challenge compete in a "Lip Sync for Your Legacy," with the winner of the lip sync earning $10,000 and choosing which of the bottom queens gets eliminated. A new twist on how the top queens of the season were chosen was revealed in the season's last episode. The previously eliminated queens returned in the finale and voted for the top two out of the remaining top four finalists, from there on the two queens with the most votes advanced while the other two were subsequently eliminate ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Dominique Jackson (model)
Dominique Brebnor (born March 20, 1975), known professionally as Dominique Jackson and Tyra Allure Ross, is a Tobagonian-American actress, author, model, and reality television personality. As an actress, she is most known for her leading role of Elektra Abundance on the FX television series '' Pose''. As a model, she has appeared in '' Vogue España''. Early life Dominique Jackson was born on March 20, 1975, in Scarborough, Tobago, Trinidad and Tobago. Jackson grew up with her grandmother". She experienced a traumatic upbringing that included bullying and sexual abuse. Her family and community in Tobago did not accept her as transgender, and she was regularly reprimanded for displaying her natural feminine characteristics. At age 15, she moved to the United States and lived with her mother. During her time in the United States, Jackson experienced homelessness and turned to sex work and living off credit cards for survival. It was in 1993, while living in Baltimore, Maryland ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |