To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything! Julie Newmar

''To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar'' is a 1995 American road comedy film directed by Beeban Kidron and starring Wesley Snipes, Patrick Swayze, and John Leguizamo as three New York City drag queens who embark on a road trip. Its title refers to an iconic autographed photo of Julie Newmar that they carry with them on their journey. Newmar additionally appears in the film as herself.

The film was notable for being the first major Hollywood studio movie to center on drag queens. The film was released on September 8, 1995 and was in the number 1 spot in the North American box office for two weeks with a worldwide gross of $47.8 million. Critical response was mixed, with particular criticism towards the plot and its familiar elements, but Swayze, Snipes, and Leguizamo’s performances were lauded. Swayze and Leguizamo both earned Golden Globe Award nominations as Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor, respectively.

Plot

After tying for the win in New York City's "Drag Queen of the Year" contest, Noxeema Jackson and Vida Boheme win a trip to Hollywood to take part in the even bigger "Miss Drag Queen of America Pageant". Before they depart, Vida persuades Noxeema to take along the inexperienced "drag princess" Chi-Chi Rodriguez as their protégé (they initially refer to him simply as a "boy in a dress" rather than as a full-fledged drag queen). To do this, they cash in their plane tickets to a friend, John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt, and use the money to buy a yellow convertible 1967 Cadillac DeVille. They set off for Los Angeles in it, carrying with them an iconic autographed photo of Julie Newmar (signed "To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar") that Vida took from a restaurant wall.

While on the road, they are pulled over by Sheriff Dollard, who hurls racial slurs, then forces Vida out of the car and tries to rape her. Vida strikes him and he is knocked unconscious. He is presumed dead and the queens drive off. At a rest stop, they recover from the incident but their car breaks down. Bobby Ray, a young man from the nearby small town of Snydersville, happens to pass by and gives them a ride to a bed and breakfast inn. The inn is owned by Carol Ann and her abusive car repairman husband, Virgil.

They are stranded in the town for the weekend waiting for the replacement part for their car. Chi-Chi is harassed by a group of roughnecks but is saved by Bobby Ray. While volunteering to help with the town's Strawberry Social, they decide the town's women need a day with them getting their hair done, picking out new outfits, and talking in a café. While searching for the new outfits, they are ecstatic to find vintage fashions from the 1960s in the town's clothing store and give the female residents (and themselves) a makeover.

Following their makeover, they are abused by the same roughnecks that attempted to harass Chi-Chi. Fed up, Noxeema handles the situation in a typically New York City manner and teaches their ringleader a lesson in manners. Vida, Noxeema, and Chi-Chi do what they can to be positive, and they set out to improve the lives of the townspeople, including offering assistance in organizing the Strawberry Social. Meanwhile, Sheriff Dollard is ridiculed by his colleagues, who believe he was beaten up by a girl. He goes in search of the drag queens.

Vida becomes acutely aware of Carol Ann's abuse at the hands of Virgil, and one night decides to intervene and beats Virgil up before throwing him out of the house. Carol Ann is able to repair their car, but they remain for the Strawberry Social. Carol Ann reveals to Vida that she knew she was a drag queen all along due to her Adam's apple.

Virgil runs into Sheriff Dollard at a bar, and they realize that the newcomers are the same people Dollard has been searching for. They head back to Snydersville, and Dollard demands that the townspeople turn them over. The other townspeople, who now realize that their new friends are not women, devise a ruse to protect them. One by one, they confront Dollard, each one claiming to be a drag queen (in a similar fashion to ''Spartacus''). Dollard is humiliated and flees. The Strawberry Social commences with everyone dressed in vibrant red outfits. The townspeople then say goodbye to Noxeema, Vida, and Chi-Chi as they prepare to leave. In honor of their friendship, Vida gives Carol Ann the autographed photo of Julie Newmar that has accompanied them on their trip.

They eventually make it to Los Angeles where Chi-Chi, after having received many tips from Vida and Noxeema during their ordeal, wins the title of Drag Queen of the Year. The crown is presented by Julie Newmar herself.

Cast

Cameo appearances

Production

Development

Writer Douglas Carter Beane originally envisioned the script as a stage play, but changed his mind when he realized putting a car on stage might not work. Beane was inspired by an anti-gay propaganda film called ''The Gay Agenda''. Of that film, Beane said, "There's a scene where they show drag queens going through a town, and the narrator is warning the viewers that these people will take over your town, and I thought, ''Well, that would be fun''."

The script found its way to Mitch Kohn, then a development executive at Amblin Entertainment. Kohn passed the script along to his boss Steven Spielberg, who “loved it." Spielberg had his friend Robin Williams do a humorous cold reading of the script while on a plane, which “mesmerized” the director. Williams expressed interest in a possible role but did not want to distract from the three leads, so he opted for a small cameo appearance.

When the script officially went into development at Amblin, multiple unnamed male directors passed on directing. British director Beeban Kidron happily accepted the job. Though advertising companies wanted to change the film’s title to the shorter “Ladies’ Night” or “She’s a Lady", Beane's script managed to keep the original title, which came from an autographed picture of Julie Newmar that Beane saw on the wall of a Times Square Chinese restaurant in the mid-1980s. Beane said Wong Foo is meant to be a metaphor for God, “because you have to thank God for everything. You have to be grateful for life. You just have to stop where you are and say thank you for everything.” A scene was filmed where the characters provide more context, but it was deleted.

Casting

When it came to casting the leading men, Wesley Snipes and John Leguizamo (whom the role of Chi-Chi Rodriguez was specifically written for) both immediately said yes. Many actors were considered for the role of Vida Boheme, including Robert Downey Jr., William Baldwin, Gary Oldman, Matthew Broderick, James Spader, John Cusack, Mel Gibson, Robert Sean Leonard, Willem Dafoe, John Turturro, Matt Dillon, Rob Lowe, Johnny Depp, Tom Cruise, and Robin Williams (who has a brief cameo in the finished film). Patrick Swayze was one of the last actors to audition for Vida. Director Beeban Kidron said that it was ultimately Swayze's walk that sealed the deal, saying "Swayze had his own makeup people transform him into a woman, and he insisted that he and Beeban take a walk around the city to prove he could pass as a woman," and "With his beauty and dancer's grace, he did just that. He had the job."

The film featured dozens of New York City's drag performers and underground stars in small roles or as featured extras. Included in the mix were RuPaul, Joey Arias, Lady Bunny, Miss Understood, Candis Cayne, Flotilla DeBarge, Miss Coco Peru, Lady Catiria, and Quentin Crisp. The three lead actors spent time in the local drag scene while researching their roles, and were each given a drag mentor to work with in developing their characters. Costume designer Marlene Stewart had the leads' wardrobes, including the shoes and corsets, custom-made.

Filming

Filming took place from July to October 1994. The drag contest seen in the beginning scene was filmed at Webster Hall in New York City. The John Shaffer Phipps Estate in Old Westbury, New York, now known as Old Westbury Gardens, was the site of the Miss Drag Queen USA contest at the end of the film. Film locations in New Jersey included Jersey City

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