黒蜥蜴 [Kurotokage / Kuro tokage / Black Lizard] (Kinji Fukasaku, 1968)
Aug
4
The Black Lizard (Akihiro Miwa) in embrace with Detective Akechi (Isao Kimura). DP: Hiroshi Dōwaki.
She-Man: A Story of Fixation (Bob Clark, 1967)
Aug
4
Lt. Albert Rose, now Rose Albert (Leslie Marlowe), strikes a dramatic pose. DP: Gerhard Maser.
Glen or Glenda [aka Male or Female aka Glen or Glenda, Which Is It? aka I Led 2 Lives] (Edward D. Wood Jr., 1953)
“Give this man satin undies, a dress, a sweater and a skirt, or even the lounging outfit he has on, and he's the happiest individual in the world. He can work better, think better, he can play better, and he can be more of a credit to his community and his government because he is happy.” —Dr. Alton, narrator
In 1953, Christine Jorgensen – who had widely reported sex reassignment surgery the year before – was approached by schlocky Z movie producer George G. Weiss to be in an exploitation movie about her voyage. She kindly thanked for the offer. Who did bite was the producer's pick to be the director, novice movie maker and transvestite Edward D. Wood Jr.. Wood reworked the script.
The resulting effort – Glen or Glenda – is not only an utterly unique autobiographic docudrama; it's a lovingly composed pamphlet in support of (heterosexual) transvestism – both fetish and lifestyle, not to be confused with drag – and transsexualism to boot. Rarely sex-related outsider lifestyles were discussed this frankly; Kinsey's Sexual Behavior in the Human Male came out only five years prior and the volume about the human female in the year of this movie.
It's also pretty unique when it comes to the art of filmmaking. However contagiously enthusiastic, Wood didn't have the skill, weight, or budget to make movies. He'd pad story lines and plot holes with stock footage and long-winded dream sequences of the sexploitation kind. Like John Waters after him, Ed would cast friends and family – Dolores Fuller was his real-world girlfriend – and cinematic idols such as Bela Lugosi, who by 1953 was addicted to alcohol and prescription drugs.
Wood's life was wild and colourful. He once said that while serving in the US Marine Corps, he feared injury more than death, worried that the combat medic would discover the pink bra and panties under his uniform. It makes me wonder if the full colour promotional material for Psycho (1960) was #Hitchcock sending out a little wink to Ed.
Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) wearing pink undergarments on a lobby card for Psycho (1960). The movie itself is in black and white and the reveal of Marion wearing pink underwear came as a shock in early-60s prissy America. DP: John L. Russell.
#Bales2023FilmChallenge #EdwardDWoodJr #BelaLugosi #LyleTalbot #DoloresFuller #ConradBrooks #WilliamCThompson #fashion #angora #crossdressing #LGBT #fetishism #drag #docudrama #biography #USA #1950s
– Yes, I love the sea most of all. But I'm afraid of it, too. – I guess we're all a little afraid of what we love.
Night Tide (Curtis Harrington, 1961)
May
22
National Maritime Day
Johnny Drake (Dennis Hopper) and Mora (Linda Lawson) in front of her joint that reads “MORA the MERMAID. ALIVE! LOVELY SIREN of the DEEP”. The sideshow's mural, and presumably the lettering too, were painted by Kenneth Anger associate Paul Mathison, both part of (Marjorie) Cameron's Magick Circle. DPs: Vilis Lapenieks & Floyd Crosby.
On the #SantaMonica pier, sailor Johnny falls in love with one of the attractions of the local #sideshow, Mora the Mermaid. As people warn Johnny about the faith of Mora's previous suitors, captivated, he becomes convinced that she is a real siren, planning his downfall.
Night Tide is a vital key to understanding the odd connection between Hollywood and the workings of #Thelema. Several involved – Marjorie Cameron (as the “Water Witch”), #drag trapeze artist and once-Jean #Cocteau's lover Barbette – moved in Thelemic and related #occult, #esoteric circles. Painter Paul Mathison, Night Tide extra and crew member, created backdrops for the works of the great Lucifer himself, #KennethAnger.
This, lost dreamlike L.A. is gone; a treasure like Night Tide serves as a reminder of a more spellbinding Hollywood.
“IS HE? or ISN'T SHE?”
She-Man: A Story of Fixation (Bob Clark, 1967)
Mar
10
International Wig Day
Lt. Albert Rose is about to be transformed into Rose Albert (Leslie Marlowe). DP: Gerhard Maser.
Real-world female impersonator Leslie Marlowe plays Lt. Albert Rose, a military man forced into wearing lingerie and said wig and eventually embracing it as “Rose Albert”.
– tagline
Re-released by Something Weird you're forgiven to think that She-Man: A Story of Fixation will be a schlockfest. Instead it's a versatile as Bob Clark's filmography. She-Man – and do please forgive the wording – is part #fetish fest, part #mondo movie, part #queer liberation.
A lovely film that, reminiscent to Ed Wood's Glen or Glenda (1953), was made by people who lived the lifestyle and therefore forfeits the unnecessary, exploitative angle.
Read more about Marlowe and his/her peers in Avery Willard's wonderful Female Impersonation from 1971.
“In the ballroom circuit, it is so obvious that if you have captured the great white way of living, or looking, or dressing, or speaking – you is a marvel.”
Paris Is Burning (Jennie Livingston, 1990)
Mar
6
National Dress Day
Pepper LaBeija is a stunningly extravagant gold-sequined dress. DP: Paul Gibson.
Paris Is Burning is probably best known for its fabulous #ballroom and #vogueㅤing scenes but in its heart, it tells the story of #family, of people who found their new ménage where they can live and love without fear and prejudice.
– Pepper LaBeija
While you may expect a fierce documentary about #TransRights, or maybe merely a glamorous parade, you will be confronted with the flagrant #racism that made the #BallroomScene so essential for the Black and #Latinx LGBT+ community who founded it. And the tragedy of its demise in the name of pop culture even more heartbreaking.
