Laverne Cox and the Politics of Trans Beauty

From the Daily Beast, a lengthy post about Trans is Beautiful becoming more than just a hash tag:

"In 2015, transgender actress Laverne Cox told the world that “trans is beautiful.” Two years later, there’s proof of that everywhere you look.

Carmen Carrera

Take just the past 30 days, for instance: Transgender model Carmen Carrera walked the runway at Chromat’s New York Fashion Week show, YouTube star and fashion icon Gigi Gorgeous released a new documentary, and Cox has been rocking the awards-show red carpet—as well as the press circuit for her new CBS drama Doubt—in an array of stunning dresses and gowns, like the remarkable one-shoulder chain-link get-up that she wore to the Grammys.

But wait, there’s more: French Vogue announced its first transgender cover model Valentina Sampaio, model Anjali Lama became the first transgender woman to model at India’s Lakmé Fashion Week, and teenage transgender TV star Jazz Jennings got her very own doll sporting a white beret and a tiered tulle skirt.

And there is so much more! Go here.

Boy Meets Girl

Following our Cyrsti's Condo post concerning the premier of "Doubt" with Laverne Cox, Paula Goodwin astutely mentioned the movie "Boy Meets Girl" with another transgender actress Rebecca Root.

The film is on my list of "must see's" which I just haven't seen yet! Thanks Paula :)

Connie also commented on the show:

"I was unable to catch the premier (Doubt) last night, but it's probably "on demand". I'm disappointed, too, about the "reveal" - especially right off the bat. Not knowing the question to which she responded, I don't know if her response was a very good one. I consider myself to have been a woman all my life; I only played the part of a man because I had to. 

I think most of us come to this realization at some point, and I'm sure Laverne, herself, has. Being a transgender woman is hard enough to explain, anyway, but it bothers me when one of us is portrayed as a "woman who used to be a man". The answer to someones question should either be, "It's none of your business" or "Do you really want to learn something?". Of course, an attorney is going to charge for every minute of the lesson if it's done in her office! :)"

Connie, since it is on CBS and if the ratings are half way decent, I am sure they will show it again! Plus since the transgender subject has already been covered, maybe that will be the last we will see of it.

Vogue Paris with a First

Transgender Brazilian model and actor Valentina Sampaio to grace the cover of Vogue Paris.

Doubts?

The new CBS legal drama Doubt premiered last night with transgender actress Laverne Cox in a prominent role.

A long-time advocate for the transgender community, Laverne Cox made history as the first transgender actress to play a transgender series regular on a broadcast television show when the legal drama Doubt premiered on CBS Thursday night.

While I was thrilled to see Laverne in the role, I wasn't so sure I was pleased when she explained to a client that yes, she used to be a man, but was now a woman. Somehow I had hoped the writers would let her play the character without ever mentioning she was transgender at all.

However, Tony Phelan and Joan Rater, Grey's Anatomy alums and the husband-and-wife creators of Doubt, wrote the part of Cameron with Cox in mind.  But they knew she was on Orange, so they assumed that she was unavailable, and were ready to conduct a nationwide talent search to find the person who was going to play Cam.. But Laverne Cox jumped at the idea to play the role.

Plus a deeper trans connection with the show comes from the producers very own transgender son, an actor who had gotten a lot of press at the time for playing the recurring role of Cole, a transgender teen living in a group home on the ABC Family series The Fosters.

Some day perhaps, we all will be recognized as people...not trans people. But until the day, Doubt is a great start.

Cyrsti's Condo "Quote of the Day"

"Being a guy was easier...it was just killing me doing it."

Jessie Hart

Hostility Too

Recently, I had the rare distinction of being bluntly mis-pronouned twice in one day.

The first was at one of my Veterans Administration appointments when the nurse called me "Mr." I simply told her to "can the Mr. and we would be OK" and she profusely apologized.

The second was not so easy.

For the first time recently I attended a transgender/crossdresser support group here in Cincinnati. Most of the group was attended by younger delightful transgender couples with a trans man mixed in and a couple cross dressers-one with his wife.

She was trying hard to be understanding and supportive but as a self professed ultra conservative person she was struggling. First of all, she was what I call a "sandpaper person", or a person who just rubs on people the wrong way. (Me at least.)

At one point, she made a point of going around the table telling everyone she knew their birth gender. I was good and didn't say I wasn't sure about her's. Which I wasn't at the beginning.

Then later, cross dresser "hubby" called me "him" and I about went ballistic. You would have thought HE would have been the last person in the room to call me him. Perhaps he won't from now on.

I suppose I should have more patience, but I just don't and normally give someone the benefit of the doubt unless HE is wearing a little black dress 4 inch heels and full makeup to a weekday meeting at a church.

Hell, I am calm...can't you tell? :)

Hostility

I am normally a fairly easy going person, until recently it seems. As a matter of fact, since the election. What really fires me up is a self professed transgender woman, trans man or ally who voted for "45" (Trumper) in the election.  I for one, wasn't one to vote away my hard earned LGBT rights.

For those who thought they wouldn't get taken away, it is already happening under Trumps appointee to the Attorney General position. That's right-already. If you are in the latter category and don't care what's happening, that's your business, but if you do, there are places to resist and protest all this craziness. (Don't think the Russians weren't the smart ones in directing the election towards "45"?)

I hope there is more than one spot to register your resistance, but this is the one I just received in my email.

"I just signed this petition telling Congress to push back against the First Amendment Defense Act, legislation to codify discrimination against LGBTQ people into federal law. I think you should too. Will you sign too? https://act.credoaction.com/sign/FADA?referring_akid=a257598056.5201849.mWNnNI&source=conf_email Thanks."

Act NOW!

 

Much Needed Vocal Advice!

From Connie:

Although I really despise the sound of a woman who speaks with a vocal fry, I'm hearing it more and more - even among radio professionals. These women often include a toned-down valley girl kind of phrasing, especially at the end of a phrase or sentence. I have been experimenting with using just a tiny bit of the vocal fry, as it has little to do with the vocal chords' ability to create pitch or tone. It sure does force one to soften the voice because it hurts at a higher volume - unless you want to sound like the late actress, Selma Diamond, who was a chain smoker. 

As a singer, I have always tried to open up and project, even when being gravelly (the trick is to create the gravel in the sinus cavity and not in the throat). By cutting back on the projection, and using a touch of the gravel (or fry) for certain words, I am slowly improving my feminine voice. My pitch will never be high enough to be that of the average woman, but there are cis women who speak in a pitch similar enough to mine. I'm really a baritone who had tried to be a tenor for many years (popular music has few baritones), and my three-octave range moves more toward the low end than the high. Working on a little fry has helped, in that I don't have to think at all about vocal range to use it.

Thanks!!!

Voice Overs?

I have found personally one of my biggest MtF transition hurdles has been my voice.

Jacqueline Bisset

I am light years away from my ideal of a low sexy Jacqueline Bisset voice! 

While I know there are great voice coaches out there in the world, with my budget, I am limited to what I read on line to come up with a DIY slightly feminine voice.

I struggle also with the fact my voice is very gravely from my days as a (back in the day) "Top-40" disc jockey.

Regardless of all of that, Saturday, Liz and I were out shopping when I heard a distinctly male voice behind me talking. For no particular reason I turned around and there were no men behind us.

Immediately my "trans-dar" antennae went up and we let the couple pass with the male voiced person. Now, I know there are many women with very low voices, but I also know somewhere along the line cis-women have a distinctive way of phrasing/talking and this person didn't.

Of course there was no way I was going to say anything because the couple seemed engrossed in being grumpy with each other. I was just fascinated.

I did have a chance to look for an Adam's Apple to no avail (can't see mine either) and for other telltale signs. On the feminine positive side, she was wearing leggings and had to die for hip development but on the male negative side, she had a real male belly.

So who knows? Like passing ships in the night, I am sure we will never meet again. I just thought it was exceedingly rare for the possibility of another couple such as Liz and I to be in the same small store at the same time. Two transgender lesbians?