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| ©2011 Breton Littlehales |
Monday, February 28, 2011
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World, 2005
Mardi Gras World, a series of warehouses devoted to floats and statues geared toward Mardi Gras parades, sits somewhat inconspicuously across the Mississippi from New Orleans in the area known as Algiers.
I visited there in the spring of 2005, on my way home by car from an assignment in Mississippi. On that one spring morning, New Orleans and Algiers were their usual (at that time) normal, bucolic and unreal selves.
Later that same trip, I sat in a dining room with a group of bankers and lawyers as rain fell sideways outside the windows. "Wow- this is intense- will it flood?" I asked.
No, they all reassured me, New Orleans has the best series of pumping stations outside of Holland. "The best there are!" they informed me.
The next morning, the headlines in the paper said the pumps had failed, power went out and the streets flooded (mildly) near the lake. This was in April. Katrina hit on August 29th.
Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World, April, 2005, Algiers LA:
I visited there in the spring of 2005, on my way home by car from an assignment in Mississippi. On that one spring morning, New Orleans and Algiers were their usual (at that time) normal, bucolic and unreal selves.
Later that same trip, I sat in a dining room with a group of bankers and lawyers as rain fell sideways outside the windows. "Wow- this is intense- will it flood?" I asked.
No, they all reassured me, New Orleans has the best series of pumping stations outside of Holland. "The best there are!" they informed me.
The next morning, the headlines in the paper said the pumps had failed, power went out and the streets flooded (mildly) near the lake. This was in April. Katrina hit on August 29th.
Blaine Kern's Mardi Gras World, April, 2005, Algiers LA:
©2011 Breton Littlehales
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Friday, February 25, 2011
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Monday, February 21, 2011
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Friday, February 18, 2011
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Picture of the Day 2/17/2011
Today is the one month anniversary of the POTD.
National Cathedral, Washington DC:
National Cathedral, Washington DC:
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| ©2011 Breton Littlehales |
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Life Is But A Drag
The Academy of Washington, Inc. is not a prep school, nor a military institution. It's a haven for pageantry, make- believe and most of all, drag.
A mixture of glamour, ball gowns, sequins, attitude, vaudeville and beauty contests, the Academy, founded in 1961, also functions as a social and charitable organization within the gay community. Mostly, though, it's fun to watch: a look back at another era when red lipstick, tiaras and upswept hair dominated. Was there ever really such a time?
The members belong to different "houses" or families. The families use the same last names, and the names are usually passed on from drag mother to drag daughter to drag granddaughter or, I guess since there are drag kings and men playing as men, drag sons. Sometimes the nomenclature eludes me. Some of the other members are named more fancifully. Among older members are classic movie star names like Fred McMurray or Lucille Ball. The grande dame is named Mame Dennis, after Patrick Dennis' infamous aunt. But mostly there are a plethora of "family" names: Colbys, Childs, Garretts, Blakes and others. The houses are virtual- Beekman Place is a reference from Auntie Mame, and Addison Road was named after a long- time member.
Most Sunday afternoons during the fall, winter and spring, the Academy assembles at Zeigfeld's, the venerable dance/ drag show club near the baseball stadium. There is usually a theme: the Royal Ball, the Zodiac Contest, the coronation of Miss Gaye Universe (DC). Glamour is the watchword. The shows are full of earnest pageantry, sincerely presented to an appreciative crowd. There is a flag procession, the Star- Spangled Banner is sung, people rise and hold their hands over their hearts. The queens comport themselves as true royalty, they are perfectly coiffed, their make-up is carefully applied, from curved plucked eyebrows to manicured nails, their skin is smooth and their custom made dresses are cut to enhance their shapely (false) curves. They are enticing specimens of femininity, and they are all men.
A dedicated member like Veronica Blake or Tula can spend as much as $10,000.00 a year on dresses, hair and accessories. Men perform as well as women, but these men usually wear decorated clothing- hats covered in sequins, or jackets painted in outrageous colors. Personally, I don't really get a guy lip- synching to some country western hit, but when I mentioned this to one of the queens, she replied, coolly, "He's a great talent, and he really worked on that outfit." Oops. Or when I saw a guy dressed head to toe as a biker in immaculate leather and said, what the hell is that outfit about, I was told, "He's a wonderful person. He's raised hundreds for charity." I quickly learned to keep my mouth shut.
I'd like to thank the lovely Veronica Blake for opening a lot of doors, and for her support of this project. She is dedicated to the Academy, and sets an exemplar of glamour that any biological woman would admire. She returned all my e-mails right away, and provided the assistance I needed to navigate these strange (to me, that is) waters. I'd also like to thank everyone who let me take their picture. I do not take that for granted, especially in this day and age. I hope they like the results.
I also want to thank the Academy itself for providing a glimpse into the classic world of glamour. Going there is like being, I think, at the Copacabana or the some other bygone club from the forties or fifties, where women drank cocktails, smoked cigarettes in holders and wore feathers and gowns.
Only now, the women are men and the cigarettes are smoked outside.
Even though I felt like Chandler’s tarantula on the wedding cake (from Farewell, My Lovely), I loved every minute of it.
Technical: Canon GII, available light, RAW originals, Lightroom, Photoshop finishes
All photographs ©2011 Breton Littlehales
A mixture of glamour, ball gowns, sequins, attitude, vaudeville and beauty contests, the Academy, founded in 1961, also functions as a social and charitable organization within the gay community. Mostly, though, it's fun to watch: a look back at another era when red lipstick, tiaras and upswept hair dominated. Was there ever really such a time?
The members belong to different "houses" or families. The families use the same last names, and the names are usually passed on from drag mother to drag daughter to drag granddaughter or, I guess since there are drag kings and men playing as men, drag sons. Sometimes the nomenclature eludes me. Some of the other members are named more fancifully. Among older members are classic movie star names like Fred McMurray or Lucille Ball. The grande dame is named Mame Dennis, after Patrick Dennis' infamous aunt. But mostly there are a plethora of "family" names: Colbys, Childs, Garretts, Blakes and others. The houses are virtual- Beekman Place is a reference from Auntie Mame, and Addison Road was named after a long- time member.
Most Sunday afternoons during the fall, winter and spring, the Academy assembles at Zeigfeld's, the venerable dance/ drag show club near the baseball stadium. There is usually a theme: the Royal Ball, the Zodiac Contest, the coronation of Miss Gaye Universe (DC). Glamour is the watchword. The shows are full of earnest pageantry, sincerely presented to an appreciative crowd. There is a flag procession, the Star- Spangled Banner is sung, people rise and hold their hands over their hearts. The queens comport themselves as true royalty, they are perfectly coiffed, their make-up is carefully applied, from curved plucked eyebrows to manicured nails, their skin is smooth and their custom made dresses are cut to enhance their shapely (false) curves. They are enticing specimens of femininity, and they are all men.
A dedicated member like Veronica Blake or Tula can spend as much as $10,000.00 a year on dresses, hair and accessories. Men perform as well as women, but these men usually wear decorated clothing- hats covered in sequins, or jackets painted in outrageous colors. Personally, I don't really get a guy lip- synching to some country western hit, but when I mentioned this to one of the queens, she replied, coolly, "He's a great talent, and he really worked on that outfit." Oops. Or when I saw a guy dressed head to toe as a biker in immaculate leather and said, what the hell is that outfit about, I was told, "He's a wonderful person. He's raised hundreds for charity." I quickly learned to keep my mouth shut.
I'd like to thank the lovely Veronica Blake for opening a lot of doors, and for her support of this project. She is dedicated to the Academy, and sets an exemplar of glamour that any biological woman would admire. She returned all my e-mails right away, and provided the assistance I needed to navigate these strange (to me, that is) waters. I'd also like to thank everyone who let me take their picture. I do not take that for granted, especially in this day and age. I hope they like the results.
I also want to thank the Academy itself for providing a glimpse into the classic world of glamour. Going there is like being, I think, at the Copacabana or the some other bygone club from the forties or fifties, where women drank cocktails, smoked cigarettes in holders and wore feathers and gowns.
Only now, the women are men and the cigarettes are smoked outside.
Even though I felt like Chandler’s tarantula on the wedding cake (from Farewell, My Lovely), I loved every minute of it.
Technical: Canon GII, available light, RAW originals, Lightroom, Photoshop finishes
All photographs ©2011 Breton Littlehales
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| Miss Gaye Universe (DC) Sarah Lee Garrett |
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| Mame Dennis |
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| Tula |
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| Veronica Blake |
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