Tag: Virginia Prince

Remembering Virginia Prince

| Feb 16, 2015 | Reply

Virginia Prince was one of the first pioneers of the modern era of crossdressing. She was not afraid to go on television shows in the ’60s to discuss the concept of men wearing women’s clothing. She published the first crossdressing magazine, Transvestia, and she founded Tri-Ess. She also was homophobic, denied transsexuals entry to Tri-Ess and was an opinionated old curmudgeon. Dallas Denny shares some of her interactions with the woman she both admired and despised.

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The Historical Roots of “Casa Valentina”

| May 19, 2014 | Reply

The new play by Harvey Fierstein, “Casa Valentina,” as most everyone knows, is based on the real Casa Susanna. In the 1960s Virginia Prince attended a weekend gathering there to promote her idea for the Society for the Second Self. The play is a fascinating look into the transgender experience of the early ’60s and it is based on a book of photographs taken at Casa Susanna. In this article Dallas Denny reveals who took most of those photographs and how they ended up inspiring Harvey Fierstein to write “Casa Valentina.”

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Review — Casa Valentina

| Apr 28, 2014 | Reply

The new Harvey Fierstein play “Casa Valentina” has opened on Broadway. It’s the story of the crossdresser resort in the Catskill Mountains in 1962 where Virginia Prince proposed the creation of Tri-Ess. Jan Brown of the MHVTA support group attended a preview night with several other ladies. This is her review of the play.

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