Cassandra Peterson
(born September 17, 1951) is an American actress. She is best known for her portrayal of the
horror hostess character Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. Peterson gained fame on
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
television station
KHJ-TV
KCAL-TV (channel 9) is an independent television station in Los Angeles, California, United States. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside CBS West Coast flagship KCBS-TV (channel 2). Both stations share studios at the CBS S ...
in her stage persona as Elvira, hosting ''
Elvira's Movie Macabre'', a weekly
B movie
A B movie or B film is a low-budget commercial motion picture. In its original usage, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, the term more precisely identified films intended for distribution as the less-publicized bottom half of a double feature ...
presentation. A member of the Los Angeles-based
improvisational and
sketch comedy
Sketch comedy comprises a series of short, amusing scenes or vignettes, called "sketches", commonly between one and ten minutes long, performed by a group of comic actors or comedians. The form developed and became popular in vaudeville, and ...
troupe
The Groundlings
The Groundlings is an American improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improvisational theater techniq ...
, Peterson based her Elvira persona in part on a "
Valley girl
A valley girl is a socioeconomic, linguistic, and youth subcultural stereotype and stock character originating during the 1980s: any materialistic upper-middle-class young woman, associated with unique vocal and California dialect features, fr ...
"-type character she created while a member of the troupe.
The popularity of ''Elvira's Movie Macabre'' led to the 1988 film ''
Elvira: Mistress of the Dark'', and later the 2001 film ''
Elvira's Haunted Hills
''Elvira's Haunted Hills'' is a 2001 American comedy horror film directed by Sam Irvin and written by Cassandra Peterson and John Paragon. It is the second film starring Peterson in the title role (credited as Elvira), after the 1988 theatrical re ...
'', both starring Peterson as Elvira. The television show was revived in 2010, featuring Elvira hosting
public domain
The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly waived, or may be inapplicable. Because those rights have expired ...
films, and airing on
This TV until 2011. Elvira returned as a horror hostess in 2014 with ''13 Nights of Elvira'', a 13-episode series produced by
Hulu
Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television series ...
, and again in 2021 for a one-night 40th Anniversary Special that aired on
Shudder.
Peterson has made
cameo appearance
A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...
s as Elvira in a number of films and television programs, including appearing as a guest commentator during
WrestleMania 2 and as a guest judge on ''
RuPaul's Drag Race'' and ''
Halloween Wars
''Halloween Wars'' is an American reality competition series from Super Delicious, the production company that also produces ''Cupcake Wars'' and '' Cake Wars''. It premiered on October 2, 2011, on Food Network and it runs over the course of fou ...
''.
Early life
Peterson was born in
Manhattan, Kansas. When she was a toddler, she was scalded by boiling water, which required skin grafts to cover over 35% of her body to heal, resulting in her having to spend three months in the hospital. However, in her interview on the podcast ''Inside of You'' hosted by actor
Michael Rosenbaum, Peterson stated that her scars were the result of a fire.
In a 2011 interview, Peterson stated that as a child, she was more fascinated by horror-themed toys while other girls were occupied with
Barbie dolls. In elementary school, she watched ''
House on Haunted Hill'', which was the first
horror film
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes.
Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, ap ...
she ever saw. During her teens, Peterson worked as a drag queen
go-go dancer in a Colorado Springs, Colorado
gay bar and as a go-go dancer for soldiers at
Fort Carson.
Career
Early career
Inspired by
Ann-Margret
Ann-Margret Olsson (born April 28, 1941) is a Swedish–American actress, singer, and dancer. As an actress and singer, she is credited as Ann-Margret.
She is known for her roles in '' Pocketful of Miracles'' (1961), ''State Fair'' (1962), '' ...
in the film ''
Viva Las Vegas
''Viva Las Vegas'' is a 1964 American musical film directed by George Sidney and starring Elvis Presley and Ann-Margret. The film is regarded by fans and film critics as one of Presley's best films, and it is noted for the on-screen chemistry b ...
'', while on a trip to
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...
, during high school, she convinced her parents to let her see a live show where she was noticed by the production staff; despite being only 17 years old, she convinced her parents to let her sign a contract. Immediately after graduating high school, she drove back to Las Vegas, where she became a
showgirl in
Frederic Apcar's pioneering "Vive Les Girls!" at
The Dunes
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
; there, she met
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...
, with whom she went on a date. She had a small role as a showgirl in the
James Bond
The ''James Bond'' series focuses on a fictional British Secret Service agent created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short-story collections. Since Fleming's death in 1964, eight other authors hav ...
film ''
Diamonds Are Forever'' (1971) and played a topless dancer in the film ''
The Working Girls
''The Working Girls'' is a 1974 sexploitation film written and directed by Stephanie Rothman and starring Sarah Kennedy, Laurie Rose and Cassandra Peterson.
Plot
Three women sharing an apartment in Los Angeles are all endangered by the men in t ...
'' (1974). Peterson says that while she has no memory of the event, she appears to have posed for the cover of
Tom Waits
Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on the underbelly of society and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He worked primarily in jazz during ...
' album ''
Small Change'' (1976).
In the early 1970s, Peterson moved to
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
and became lead singer of the Italian rock bands I Latins 80 and The Snails. After being introduced to film director
Federico Fellini
Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most ...
by the producer of a documentary on Las Vegas showgirls in which she had appeared, she landed a small part in the film ''
Roma
Roma or ROMA may refer to:
Places Australia
* Roma, Queensland, a town
** Roma Airport
** Roma Courthouse
** Electoral district of Roma, defunct
** Town of Roma, defunct town, now part of the Maranoa Regional Council
* Roma Street, Brisbane, a ...
'' (1972). When she returned to the United States, she toured nightclubs and discos around the country with a musical/comedy act,
Mamma's Boys.
In her 2021 memoir ''Yours Cruelly, Elvira'', she writes, "Perhaps the biggest mistake I made in my twenties was posing nude for a husband-and-wife photography team, who bullshitted me into doing what they said was a 'test shoot' for ''Penthouse'' magazine. They guaranteed me it would never be seen anywhere publicly."
[Yours Cruelly, Elvira. Cassandra Peterson. Page 157. Hachette Book Group New York, NY 2021.] She adds, "I never saw or heard from them again, and as far as I knew, that was the end of that - until 1981 when I became famous. Those photos, pubic hair and all, appeared in every sleazy men's magazine on the stand and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it."
In 1979, she joined the Los Angeles-based
improvisational troupe
The Groundlings
The Groundlings is an American improvisational and sketch comedy troupe and school based in Los Angeles. The troupe was formed by Gary Austin in 1974 and uses an improv format influenced by Viola Spolin, whose improvisational theater techniq ...
, where she created a
Valley girl
A valley girl is a socioeconomic, linguistic, and youth subcultural stereotype and stock character originating during the 1980s: any materialistic upper-middle-class young woman, associated with unique vocal and California dialect features, fr ...
-type character upon whom the Elvira persona is largely based.
Peterson was one of two finalists for the role of
Ginger Grant for the third ''
Gilligan's Island
''Gilligan's Island'' is an American sitcom created and produced by Sherwood Schwartz. The show's ensemble cast features Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Jim Backus, Natalie Schafer, Tina Louise, Russell Johnson and Dawn Wells. It aired for th ...
'' television movie in 1981, but was dropped before filming. Shortly after that,
KHJ-TV
KCAL-TV (channel 9) is an independent television station in Los Angeles, California, United States. It is owned by the CBS News and Stations group alongside CBS West Coast flagship KCBS-TV (channel 2). Both stations share studios at the CBS S ...
offered her the
horror host position. Peterson also was a personality on
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
radio station
KROQ-FM
KROQ-FM (106.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Pasadena, California, serving Greater Los Angeles. Owned by Audacy, Inc., it broadcasts an alternative rock format known as "The World Famous KROQ" (pronounced "kay-rock").
The st ...
106.7 from 1982 to 1983.
Elvira
Elvira begins: ''Movie Macabre''
In 1981, six years after the death of
Larry Vincent, who starred as host Sinister Seymour of a Los Angeles weekend horror show called ''
Fright Night
''Fright Night'' is a 1985 American supernatural horror film written and directed by Tom Holland (in his directorial debut) and produced by Herb Jaffe. It stars Chris Sarandon, William Ragsdale, Roddy McDowall, Amanda Bearse, Jonathan Stark, D ...
'', show producers began to bring the show back.
The producers decided to use a hostess. They asked 1950s'
horror hostess
Maila Nurmi
Maila Elizabeth Syrjäniemi (December 11, 1922 – January 10, 2008), known professionally as Maila Nurmi, was an American actress who created the campy 1950s character Vampira.
She was raised in Astoria, Oregon, where she worked in tuna and s ...
to revive ''
The Vampira Show''. Nurmi worked on the project for a short time, but quit when the producers would not hire
Lola Falana to play Vampira. The station sent out a
casting call, and Peterson auditioned and won the role. Producers left it up to her to create the role's image. She and her best friend, Robert Redding, came up with the sexy punk/vampire look after producers rejected her original idea to look like
Sharon Tate's character in ''
The Fearless Vampire Killers
''The Fearless Vampire Killers, or Pardon Me, But Your Teeth Are in My Neck'' (shortened to ''The Fearless Vampire Killers''; originally released in the United Kingdom as ''Dance of the Vampires'') is a 1967 British comedy horror film directed b ...
''.
Shortly before the first taping, producers received a
cease and desist
A cease and desist letter is a document sent to an individual or business to stop alleged illegal activity. The phrase "cease and desist" is a legal doublet, made up of two near-synonyms. The letter may warn that, if the recipient does not disc ...
letter from Nurmi. Besides the similarities in the format and costumes, Elvira's closing line for each show, wishing her audience "Unpleasant dreams", was notably similar to Vampira's closer: "Bad dreams, darlings..." uttered as she walked off down a misty corridor. The court ruled in favor of Peterson, holding that "'likeness' means actual representation of another person's appearance, and not simply close resemblance." Peterson claimed that Elvira was nothing like Vampira aside from the basic design of the black dress and black hair. Nurmi claimed that Vampira's image was based on
Morticia Addams
Morticia Addams (née Frump) is a fictional character from the '' Addams Family'' multimedia franchise created by American Charles Addams in 1933. She plays the role of the family's reserved matriarch. Morticia Addams has been portrayed in seve ...
, a character in
Charles Addams's cartoons that appeared in ''
The New Yorker
''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'' magazine.
Peterson's Elvira character rapidly gained notice with her tight-fitting, low-cut, cleavage-displaying black gown. Adopting the flippant tone of a California "
Valley girl
A valley girl is a socioeconomic, linguistic, and youth subcultural stereotype and stock character originating during the 1980s: any materialistic upper-middle-class young woman, associated with unique vocal and California dialect features, fr ...
", she brought a satirical, sarcastic edge to her commentary. She reveled in dropping risqué double entendres and making frequent jokes about her cleavage. In an ''AOL Entertainment News'' interview, Peterson said, "I figured out that Elvira is me when I was a teenager. She's a spastic girl. I just say what I feel and people seem to enjoy it." Her camp humor, sex appeal, and good-natured self-mockery made her popular with late-night movie viewers and her popularity soared.
The Elvira character soon evolved from an obscure cult figure to a lucrative brand. She was associated with many products through the 1980s and 1990s, including
Halloween costumes, comic books, action figures, trading cards, pinball machines, Halloween decor, model kits, calendars, perfume and dolls. She has appeared on the cover of ''
Femme Fatales'' magazine five times.
Her popularity reached its zenith with the release of the 1988 feature film ''
Elvira: Mistress of the Dark'', on whose script, written directly for the screen, Peterson collaborated with
John Paragon
John Dixon Paragon (December 9, 1954 – April 3, 2021) was an American actor, writer and director. He is known for his work on the television series ''Pee-wee's Playhouse'', where he portrayed Jambi the Genie and provided the voice for Pterri ...
and Sam Egan.
After several years of attempts to make a sequel to ''Elvira: Mistress of the Dark,'' Cassandra and her manager and then-husband Mark Pierson decided to finance a second movie. In November 2000, Peterson wrote, again in collaboration with Paragon, and co-produced ''
Elvira's Haunted Hills
''Elvira's Haunted Hills'' is a 2001 American comedy horror film directed by Sam Irvin and written by Cassandra Peterson and John Paragon. It is the second film starring Peterson in the title role (credited as Elvira), after the 1988 theatrical re ...
.'' The film was shot in
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
for just under one million dollars. With little budget left for promotion, Cassandra and Mark screened the film at
AIDS
Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ma ...
charity fund raisers across America. For many people in attendance, this was their first opportunity to see the woman behind the Elvira character. On July 5, 2002, ''Elvira's Haunted Hills'' had its official premiere in Hollywood. Elvira arrived at the premiere in her Macabre Mobile. The film was later screened at the 2003
Cannes Film Festival
The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films ...
.
In September 2010, ''Elvira's Movie Macabre'' returned to television syndication, this time with public domain films. In October 2014, it was revealed that a new series of thirteen episodes had been produced, ''
13 Nights of Elvira'' for
Hulu
Hulu () is an American subscription streaming service majority-owned by The Walt Disney Company, with Comcast's NBCUniversal holding a minority stake. It was launched on October 29, 2007 and it offers a library of films and television series ...
. The show premiered on October 19, 2014, running through to Halloween.
As of September 2018, Peterson was working to develop a direct sequel to 1988's ''Elvira: Mistress of the Dark'', as well as an animated Elvira project.
Elvira on home video
In 1985, Elvira began hosting a home video series called ''
ThrillerVideo ThrillerVideo was a horror home video series that began being released in February 1985 to 1987 by U.S.A. Home Video and International Video Entertainment (I.V.E.).
Background
Released on VHS and Betamax, many of the "films" released by ''Thrill ...
'', a division of
International Video Entertainment (IVE). Many of these films were hand-selected by Peterson. Choosing to stay away from the more explicit
cannibal,
slasher
Slasher may refer to:
* Slasher (basketball), a style of play in basketball
* Slasher film, a subgenre of the horror film
* Slasher (tool), a scrub-clearing implement
* ''Slasher'' (2004 film), a 2004 documentary film
* ''Slasher'' (2007 film ...
and
zombie films of the time, these were generally tamer films such as ''
The Monster Club'' and
Dan Curtis television films, as well as many episodes of the ''
Hammer House of Horror'' television series. Since she had refused to host ''
Make Them Die Slowly,'' ''
Seven Doors of Death,'' and ''
Buried Alive,'' however, the videos were released on the ''ThrillerVideo'' label without Elvira's appearance as hostess. After this, several extended episodes of the British namesake series ''
Thriller
Thriller may refer to:
* Thriller (genre), a broad genre of literature, film and television
** Thriller film, a film genre under the general thriller genre
Comics
* ''Thriller'' (DC Comics), a comic book series published 1983–84 by DC Comics i ...
'' (i.e. ''
The Devil's Web,'' ''
A Killer in Every Corner,'' ''
Murder Motel'') were also released without an appearance by Elvira; in some, such as ''Buried Alive,'' the cast replaced her.
The success of the ''ThrillerVideo'' series led to a second video set, ''Elvira's Midnight Madness'', released through Rhino Home Video. In 2004 a DVD horror-film collection called ''Elvira's Box of Horrors'' was released, marking Elvira's return to horror-movie hostessing after a ten-year absence.
Unaired pilot for ''The Elvira Show'' on CBS
In 1993, she filmed a pilot for CBS called ''The Elvira Show.'' An expansion of the 1988 film with a sitcom setting, the premise had Elvira and her family moving into a new neighborhood with her older aunt and dealing with nosy neighbors and uptight conservatives who all want them to move out. It also starred
Katherine Helmond,
Phoebe Augustine
Phoebe Ellen Ceresia (born April 1, 1967) (known professionally as Phoebe Augustine) is an American actress best known for playing Ronette Pulaski in ''Twin Peaks''.
Career
She portrayed Laura Palmer's friend Ronette Pulaski in several episod ...
,
Cristine Rose
Cristine Sue Rose (born January 31, 1951), sometimes credited as Christine Rose, is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Angela Petrelli on the hit NBC science fiction drama ''Heroes''.
Early life
Rose was born in Lynwood, ...
,
Ted Henning,
Lynne Marie Stewart
Lynne Marie Stewart (born December 14, 1946) is an American actress, best known for her performance as Miss Yvonne, the Most Beautiful Woman in Puppet Land. She originated the role in the 1981 stage show ''The Pee-wee Herman Show'', continuing it ...
,
Claudette Wells,
John Paragon
John Dixon Paragon (December 9, 1954 – April 3, 2021) was an American actor, writer and director. He is known for his work on the television series ''Pee-wee's Playhouse'', where he portrayed Jambi the Genie and provided the voice for Pterri ...
, Laurie Faso, and
Basil Hoffman
Basil Harry Hoffman (January 18, 1938 – September 17, 2021) was an American actor with a film and television career spanning five decades, mostly in supporting roles. He starred in films with many award-winning directors, including Alan Pakul ...
. It was not picked up by a TV network.
Non-Elvira career
Peterson has also portrayed non-Elvira roles in many other films, most notably ''
Pee-wee's Big Adventure'' in 1985 alongside friend and fellow
Groundling Paul Reubens, who starred as his
Pee-wee Herman character; ''
Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold
''Allan Quatermain and the Lost City of Gold'' is a 1986 American adventure comedy film directed by Gary Nelson and released in West Germany on December 18, 1986, and in the United States on January 30, 1987. It is loosely based on the 1887 novel ...
,'' released in 1987, which starred
Richard Chamberlain and
Sharon Stone; and ''
All About Evil
''All About Evil'' is a 2010 American black comedy slasher film and marks the feature film directorial debut of Joshua Grannell, who also wrote the script. The film stars Natasha Lyonne as an unhinged theatre owner who begins making snuff films a ...
,'' as a mother named Linda, who says not to go to the old theater to watch scary movies.
Rob Zombie confirmed Peterson to appear in his ''
The Munsters'' movie.
Personal life
Peterson married musician Mark Pierson in 1981, and he soon became her personal manager. They had one daughter, Sadie Pierson (born October 12, 1994), and were divorced on February 14, 2003.
Peterson released her memoir, ''
Yours Cruelly, Elvira: Memoirs of the Mistress of the Dark'', on September 21, 2021. She revealed in the book that she has been in a relationship with a woman, Teresa "T" Wierson, since 2002. They began their romantic relationship following Peterson's separation from her husband. In the book, she also accused basketball player
Wilt Chamberlain of sexually assaulting her during a party at his
Bel Air mansion in the 1970s.
Peterson was a
vegetarian
Vegetarianism is the practice of abstaining from the consumption of meat (red meat, poultry, seafood, insects, and the flesh of any other animal). It may also include abstaining from eating all by-products of animal slaughter.
Vegetariani ...
for many years; as of 2021, she continues to maintain a "mostly vegetarian" diet.
Filmography
Music video appearances
Discography
Peterson recorded several songs and skits for her Elvira Halloween albums in the 1980s and 1990s:
* ''Elvira and the Vi-Tones: 3-D TV'': "3-D TV (Three-Dimensional)" b/w "Elvira's Theme" (Rhino Records 1982)
* ''Elvira Presents Vinyl Macabre: Oldies but Ghoulies (Volume 1)'' (Rhino Records 1983)
* ''Elvira Presents Haunted Hits'' (Rhino Records 1987)
* ''Elvira Presents Monster Hits'' (Rhino Records 1994)
* ''Elvira Presents Revenge of the Monster Hits'' (Rhino Records 1995)
* ''Elvira's Gravest Hits'' (Shout! Factory 2010)
She also performed on a track called "Zombie Killer" for the band
Leslie and the LY's
Leslie & the LY's was a pop music band from Ames, Iowa that began as an open mike trio in 2004.
Leslie & the LY's is made up of front-woman Leslie Hall, also known as Mother Gem, who composes all of the music herself generally using the Apple Co ...
, released in February 2008. The music video for the track features Leslie and the LY's performing to a sold-out audience of
zombies in a fictional venue called "Elvira Stadium". A 7" single was released.
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
*
Awards and nominations
Awards
Los Angeles Silver Lake Film Festival
*''Spirit of Silver Lake Award'': 2001
Hollywood Horror Festival
*''Vincent Price Award'': 2018
Nominations
Saturn Awards
The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films be ...
*''Best Actress'': 1988
Raspberry Awards
*''Worst Actress'': 1988
See also
*
Midnight movie
The term midnight movie is rooted in the practice that emerged in the 1950s of local television stations around the United States airing low-budget genre films as late-night programming, often with a host delivering ironic asides. As a cinemati ...
Footnotes
External links
*
*
*
Full text of court decision in ''Nurmi v. Peterson''''SWINDLE'' magazine interview with Cassandra PetersonKCRW Guest DJ set
TheRealElvirao
Mastodon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peterson, Cassandra
1951 births
20th-century American actresses
21st-century American actresses
Actresses from Colorado
Actresses from Colorado Springs, Colorado
Actresses from Kansas
American female dancers
American film actresses
American television actresses
American television personalities
American voice actresses
American women television personalities
American women comedians
Dancers from Kansas
Elvira, Mistress of the Dark
Horror hosts
LGBT actresses
American LGBT actors
LGBT people from Colorado
LGBT people from Kansas
LGBT rights activists from the United States
Living people
People from Manhattan, Kansas