To Wong Foo Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar (1995)
Dir. Beeban Kidron
This was such a formative movie
This shit was revolutionary for the mid-90s. Among other things it helped me understand that transgender and cross-dressing were completely separate things.
To this day, I am in awe of the fact that Patrick Swayze not only campaigned hard to get the audition, not only auditioned in dress and makeup, but spent most of the day leading up to the audition walking around LA in dress and makeup.
This was a man who could sing, dance, act, ride a horse, fight, and walk in heels, he had nothing to prove to anyone, and he is MISSED.
Okay, Iâm not done feeling about this.
If youâre younger, you may not know Patrick Swayze; he was Taken From Us in 2009. But Patrick Swayze was an icon of masculinity. Men were willing to watch romantic movies because Patrick Swayze was in them.
Patrick Swayze was fucking beefcake.
And this man didnât just agree to do a movie where the only time heâs not actually in drag is the first three minutes, which involve stepping out of the shower, doing make up, and getting Dressed. He has ONE LINE that is delivered in a manâs voice, and itâs not during those three minutes.
And if you watch those three minutes, you see a stark difference between his portrayal of Miss Vida BohĂ©me and Wesley Snipes as Noxeema Jackson. (I am not criticizing Snipesâ performance. They were different roles.) Noxeema was a comedy character. Chi-Chi was a comedy character. But Miss Vida BohĂ©me was a dramatic role, played by a dramatic powerhouse.
When Vida sits down in front of the mirror, she sees a man. And she doesnât like it.
Then she puts her hair up, and her face lights up.
âReady or not,â she says. âHere comes Mama.â
And while Noxeema is having fun with her transformation (at one point breaking into a giggling fit after putting on pantyhose), Vida is simply taking pleasure in bringing out her true self. And when sheâs done, she sees this:
And you can FEEL her pride.
All of this from an actor who, up to this point, walked on to the screen and dripped testosterone.
It matters that this happened in 1995. It wouldnât fly today, wouldnât be the right choice, weâve moved past it, but it mattered and was important that it happened the way it happened today. Itâs one of the stepping stones.


















