Dina’s Diner, January 11, 2021

SHAINE — AS IN REIGN

Browsing around the internet I saw this headline on the India Makers website: Meet Shaine Soni Who Braved the Social Stigma at Home to Get Crowned Miss Transqueen India 2020. The article appeared on the site December 23, 2020. TGForum’s The Week in Trans column had an item about Shaine Soni in the January 4, 2021 edition.

The Indian Makers article addressed some of the challenges that trans persons like Shaine face in Indian culture. “India’s attitude towards LGBTQIA+ or the queer community is still highly conservative. The transgender community is one of the most marginalized in the country and face immense social stigma in their everyday lives.”

Shaine Soni

The dichotomy of India’s conservative, patriarchal society and the millions of trans persons in that populous country, mostly hidden as a result, is what interested me about the Shaine Soni story. There have been some notable Indian trans persons or crossdressers who popped up in the past. So it is not completely unheard of for a story such as Shaine’s to grab a headline.

There is a presence of Indian crossdressers on some of the online trans websites. In fact, several years ago I wrote a Diner item about Indian crossdressers who favor traditional saris over the usual western fashions focusing on legs, lingerie, and high heels. Even if you embrace traditional dress to celebrate your culture, the conservative culture can still be oppressive for those trans persons like Shaine who want to live and express themselves as women.

The article reported, “Born biologically male, Shaine faced an uphill struggle as she became comfortable with her gender identity. As she grew up, she faced increasing pressure from relatives and friends who would discourage her from growing her hair long, wearing the ‘girly’ clothes, or having ‘effeminate’ mannerisms. “With so much pressure and bullying around me, I desperately felt I was different and that there was a problem in me,” she told News18. Things began to change when as a teenager she stumbled upon information about gender identity and gender reassignment surgery. She ended up leaving home at seventeen to pursue her education in fashion from the National Institute of Fashion Technology. She also transitioned with hormonal therapy a few years later. She admitted that due to the lack of understanding and support from her friends, she had to do everything on her own.”

And she did find success as a fashion consultant with her own designer label. She was well-known enough in India that she was chosen (because the pageant could not be conducted normally due to the pandemic) to represent India at the Miss International Queen pageant in Thailand in 2021. She told an interviewer for the Hindustan Times, “It’s high time we change how we perceive transwomen in India. They are not people you look down upon or have sympathy for. We are no different. All the previous Miss India, Miss World, Miss Universe winners were women with a purpose, and so am I.”

WHAT IS JEOPARDY!?

And the answer clue is: A game show that has had a few trans contestants over the years.

I saw a number of news articles about Kate Freeman, a trans contestant on Jeopardy! in December 2020. Kate appeared on the show December 11, 2020 and won the day’s contest. I saw the show and do not recall noticing or thinking if Kate was trans as I watched.

Kate Freeman on Jeopardy!.

Most of the news reports – and there were many – about Kate mentioned that she was the first trans winner on the show. The article on the Out.com website noted that Kate was wearing a trans pride pin during her appearances on the show. I knew there were contestants on earlier episodes who identified as trans and I remember seeing some of those shows. Many of the news articles also mentioned that a week previous to Kate’s win, another contestant had been an out bisexual contestant. Jeopardy! has been getting a lot of press attention recently because of host Alex Trebek’s cancer diagnosis and eventual death. So it was nice to see the show’s producers were not afraid to give higher than normal visibility to LGBTQ contestants.

As I was doing some research into the other trans contestants on the show (Fran Fried and Ava Hadaway are two), I visited several websites with comment boards about the shows. I came across many positive comments, some questions from puzzled viewers, and some negative derogatory comments by the usual comment board know-nothings.

Kate is a graduate of the University of Michigan, a financial specialist for Cal Edison, and is in a relationship with her girlfriend in California. It takes a lot of smarts to get on the show and more smarts and skill to win even one contest. So congrats to Kate and the other trans representatives who have appeared on the show over the years.

AT THE CROSSROADS

Jessie Team Rocket crossplay.

Jessie

I came across the term crossplay in an article about cosplay. Cosplay, of course, is the live action embodiment of fictional fantasy characters. Crossplay (if you haven’t guessed already) “is a type of cosplay in which the person dresses up as a character of a different gender” as a Wikipedia entry defined it.

The cosplay community is large and international in scope and seems to have almost as many levels as the trans/crossdressing community. Beside those participants replicating their characters’ appearance as faithfully as possible, there are some who believe that “for every given female character, there is a male version of that character” and vice versa” according to another Wikipedia entry. Within the cosplay community that adjunct is called “Rule 63.”

The Wiki entry mentioned that cosplay in Japan (where it seems to have originated) is largely a female activity. The women participants often cosplay fantasy characters who are primarily male but there is little stigma attached to “crossing” gender lines because the characters’ fictional being is often ambiguous.

As for male to female crossplay, the Wiki entry said that it has come a long way from its beginning as fellas dressed as almost parody creations. The post reported: “In recent years, however, anime conventions have seen an increase in the number of Male to Female crossplayers who put a formidable amount of preparation and effort into the ruse of a female persona. Some males, particularly teenagers, frequently manage to recreate a striking image of femininity that can fool most unsuspecting bystanders.”

I found it interesting in that crossplay is different than crossdressing because of what is going on in the heads of participants. Serious crossplayers and serious crossdressers both try to express (at least outwardly) some innate femininity within themselves. One may be in service of the character they are playing; one may be in service of a psychic need that seeks an outlet. There are probably some who dabble in both worlds. But I don’t think crossplay is a point on the gender spectrum and I doubt if a non-character crossdresser would be understood at a cosplay convention. It’s almost as though they exist in parallel universes – which may make a good anime concept in itself.

GAGA GOT HER GOING

Lady Gaga and someone’s exe boyfriend.

I came across an older article in The New York Times headlined My Ex-Boyfriend’s New Girlfriend is Lady Gaga. The article appeared on February 27, 2020. The author of the piece is Lindsay Crouse (not to be confused with the actress of the same name) who is a Times journalist with a Harvard degree.

Ms. Crouse told the tale of discovering that a former long-term boyfriend became Lady Gaga’s “mystery man” escort to the 2020 Super Bowl and other events. After receiving an avalanche of calls and texts she learned the reason: “It was an emergency. My ex-boyfriend, I learned, had a new girlfriend. Lady Gaga. ‘Lolol’ if you want. (Everyone I know did.) But it was true. While I’d been watching the Super Bowl on television in New York, they were snuggling in her private box at the Hard Rock Stadium at Miami Gardens.”

Lindsay then tells of how she began a re-evaluation of her self-image as the news sunk in. She wrote: “As you can guess from the fact that you’ve probably never heard of me, I’m not famous. So suddenly it’s like I’m star-gawking by proxy. But there’s almost no way to avoid it. I don’t follow my ex on social media. We were “friends” on Facebook. Then we were “in a relationship” on Facebook. After we broke up, I noticed I was “blocked” on Facebook. And then we moved on. I hadn’t googled him in forever (I promise). But this month I knew everything about his new relationship status, within hours of when it was disclosed.”

She took heart in something Lady Gaga said in an interview. “Don’t you ever let a soul in the world tell you that you can’t be exactly who you are.” Lindsay says somewhat comically that she began to order the large coffee instead of the medium; she began shamelessly forwarding good reviews of her work to her boss; she got her makeup done and included a set of false eyelashes; and instead of re-wearing an old dress for a nighttime event she bought an expensive, fashionable new dress. She added this note: “I haven’t figured out how to start a multimillion-dollar entertainment empire yet, or a major advocacy campaign, but yes to that, too.”

So maybe our exes aren’t dating celebrities — or celebrity impersonators, for that matter. But it doesn’t hurt to look at role models and think “why not me?” What would Lady Gaga do? What can we do all by ourselves?

TWO BEAUTIES

Dawn Wells as Mary Ann.

Everyone certainly heard about the death of Dawn Wells – “Mary Ann” of Gilligan’s Island fame. She was 82 and succumbed to complications from Covid-19 on December 30, 2020.

Dawn was born in Reno, Nevada and competed in the 1960 Miss America pageant as the reigning Miss Nevada. (I never knew that before.) She appeared in some films and TV shows before getting the Mary Ann part in 1964. She was between 25 and 29 years old during the run of the show. She worked in Island reunion shows and other TV projects (including a guest spot on RuPaul’s Drag Race) into her 70s. She retained her recognizable cuteness into her later years.

If you grew up in the 1960s when Gilligan’s Island originally aired (1964-67) or even decades after in reruns, the running question for men was “Who’d you rather: Mary Ann or Ginger?” According to a Wikipedia post about Dawn, she was well aware of the unofficial contest and claimed “I always win.”

The choice for crossdressers may be particularly tough. The Ginger character always had the slinky evening gowns, coiffed hairdo, jeweled earrings, and even high heels in the sandy surroundings. But the Mary Ann character was a pure, sweet, young woman as only Hollywood can depict it – pigtails, a tied off belly blouse, high-waisted shorts, and sneakers. Crossdressing fans of the show might want to be Ginger but they’d probably still rather be with Mary Ann.

Fran Drescher

I saw an interesting short post on Yahoo.com’s Fashionista feature on December 30, 2020. It was headlined Great Moments in Fashion History: Fran Drescher in a Very Fran Fine Minidress.

The Great Moments in Fashion History feature is something the staff at Yahoo’s fashion section is doing to capture their iconic looks through the years. I thought it was pretty cool that they selected Fran Drescher (and her Fran Fine character from the TV show The Nanny) as a fashion icon. Fran Fine’s wardrobe consisted almost exclusively of brightly colored, slim-fitted minidresses/skirts, opaque tights, and high heels. It was a strange mix of 1990s modern quirky with 1960s technicolor retro fashion.

To be clear, Fran on The Nanny was definitely a fashion icon to me — I just didn’t think style editors would see her that way. The photo here is from a Hollywood event which goes to show that Fran was Fran and took that unique style wherever she went. “Great Moments” in fashion indeed. She will forever be in my Hall of Fame.

Tags: crossdressing, featured, opinion, Transgender

Category: Transgender Fun & Entertainment, Transgender Opinion