Divine

“People who used to make fun are now fans. I had the last laugh.”

Baltimore actor and crossdressing icon Harris Milstead achieved fame and infamy in equal measures under the stage name Divine. A high school friend of all-time great schlock director John Waters, Divine starred in some of Waters’ most acclaimed (and obscene films), including Pink Flamingosand Mondo Trasho. Divine demanded respect and recognition as an actor and performer rather than a novelty, and one New York Post reader called them “one of the few truly radical and essential artists” in America.