Like most LGBT people in her day, the past conjures up painful memories, and seemingly the best solution is to leave your family and past behind to start anew. There was a story Stormé shared about being beaten up and left hanging on a fence by one leg, and that leg injury haunted her all her life.Īnd we know that she loved other women at a time when it was criminally, professionally and socially punishable. We do know that as a bi-racial child, she wasn’t white enough nor black enough she endured taunting, bullying and abuse from kids both black and white. (5) We are not thoroughly certain of the exact year of her birth, and, just as the year of her birth is a mystery, so too are the details throughout her life off stage.
Dates and exact locations are either unknown or kept private.(3) We do know from an interview with photographer, filmmaker and gay activist, Avery Willard, that Stormé used Decemas her birthday.(4) This birth year does not correspond with the year of her high school graduation in 1942 other records suggest that her birth year was 1923. She was fostered in the Midwest where she was raised with two older foster siblings. Stormé was born in New Orleans to a black woman and a white man, and due to her mixed race, was never issued a birth certificate. She performed as a male impersonator serving as the Master of Ceremonies and show director for the renowned Jewel Box Revue from January 1955 to September 7, 1969.(2)
Stormé DeLarverié was a legendary male impersonator, international icon, LGBT community activist and “a self-appointed guardian of lesbians” (1) in New York City.
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