Jackie Curtis

Jackie Curtis (born John Curtis Holder Jr.; February 19, 1947 – May 15, 1985) was an American underground actor, singer, and playwright best known as a Warhol superstar. Primarily a stage actor in New York City, Curtis performed as both a man and in drag.

Curtis made his stage debut as Nefertiti's brother in Tom Eyen's play ''Miss Nefertiti Regrets'' (1965). He subsequently wrote several Off-off Broadway plays, including ''Glamour, Glory and Gold'' (1967), ''Amerika Cleopatra'' (1968), and ''Vain Victory: Vicissitudes of the Damned'' (1971). Curtis appeared in the films '' Andy Warhol's Flesh'' (1968), directed by Paul Morrissey, and starred in '' Women in Revolt'' (1971), a comedic spoof of the women's liberation movement.

While performing in drag on stage and screen, Curtis would typically wear lipstick, glitter, bright red hair, ripped dresses, and stockings. Curtis pioneered this combination of camp trashy glamour as a style that inspired many entertainers, including Jayne County, the New York Dolls, and glam rock performers such as David Bowie, Iggy Pop, Gary Glitter and Mott the Hoople.

Early life

Jackie Curtis was born John Curtis Holder Jr. in New York City to singer John Holder and Jenevive Uglialoro and had one sibling, half-brother Timothy Holder, who is an openly gay Episcopal priest. Their parents divorced and Curtis was mostly raised by maternal grandmother Slugger Ann (Ann Uglialoro), an East Village bar owner.

Career

In 1965, Curtis appeared in Tom Eyen's play ''Miss Nefertiti Regrets'' at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club along with fellow newcomer Bette Midler. Curtis reprised the role as Ptolemy II.

Curtis' play ''Glamour, Glory and Gold'', which chronicled the ascent and decline of a female film star, debuted in an East Village basement in 1967. The play starred Darling, Melba LaRose, Jr., and Robert De Niro in his first appearance on stage, playing several roles. Curtis played a supporting part as a witty chorus dancer. The program notes explained that Curtis was an emergency fill-in since the girl cast in the part had abruptly quit. "This seemed to account for the strangely amorphous portrayal, neither male nor female, but a comedic talent" said Ernest Leogrande of the ''New York Daily News''.

Curtis took the starring roles in his following plays. He followed up his theatrical debut with a musical called ''Lucky Wonderful'' (1968) featuring Candy Darling, Paul Serrato, Holly Woodlawn, and Melba LaRose. The playboy socialite Tommy Manville, who had a number of odd and exotic spouses, served as the inspiration for the play.

The play ''Amerika Cleopatra'' (1968) featured Agosto Machado and Harvey Fierstein and ran at the WPA Theatre.

In 1968, Curtis was cast in the Warhol-produced film '' Flesh'' (1968), which was directed by Paul Morrissey. Curtis then starred alongside transgender Warhol superstars Candy Darling and Holly Woodlawn in '' Women in Revolt'' (1971), which satirizes the Women's Liberation Movement and alludes to Valerie Solanas and her '' SCUM Manifesto''. Warhol said of Curtis, "Jackie Curtis is not a drag queen. Jackie is an artist. A pioneer without a frontier." Years later when Warhol attended a Boy George concert, he remarked, "I just couldn't like him because it reminded me of what Jackie Curtis could have been."

In 1969, Curtis performed with the Playhouse of the Ridiculous in Tom Murrin's ''Cock-Strong'' alongside Penny Arcade, Anthony Ingrassia, and others. Music for the production was written by Ralph Czitrom and performed by the Silver Apples.

In between filming with Warhol and Morrissey, Curtis continued to write plays. The play ''Heaven Grand in Amber Orbit'' (1970) with Ruby Lynn Reyner and Holly Woodlawn ran at the Playhouse of the Ridiculous for weeks. Another play, ''Femme Fatale'' (1970) starred Patti Smith, Jayne County and Penny Arcade.

Curtis wrote ''Vain Victory: The Vicissitudes Of The Damned'' and co-directed a production of the play at the La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club and the WPA in 1971. The play starred Candy Darling and Mario Montez.

In 1974, Curtis and Holly Woodlawn performed together in "Cabaret in the Sky: An Evening with Holly Woodlawn and Jackie Curtis" at the New York Cultural Center. The poster for the show was designed by ''Interview'' magazine illustrator Richard Bernstein.

Reportedly, Curtis graduated from Hunter College in 1975, but this can not be confirmed because no diploma has been found.

Curtis's poem "B-Girls", much of which is based on observations of people who visited grandmother Slugger Ann's bar, was included in the 1979 book '' The Poets' Encyclopedia''. At eight pages long, it was the longest poem in the book.

Curtis directed and performed in Nick Markovich's ''I Died Yesterday'' at La MaMa in 1983. Curtis portrayed a nurse in the documentary film '' Burroughs'' (1983).

Curtis's final play ''Champagne'' ran at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club January 3–27, 1985 and featured George Abagnalo as the male lead.

In 1985, Curtis used the name Shannon Montgomery and started going to the HB Studio for acting classes. Photographer Francesco Scavullo took new headshots of Curtis and he began to audition for male parts in soap operas and plays in New York.

Death

Curtis had a heroin addiction and died from an overdose on May 15, 1985. The wake was held at the Andrett Funeral Home, while the funeral service took place in St. Ann Church in New York. Curtis was laid to rest as a man wearing a suit, with a white flower on his lapel and his hair slicked back. A plaque bearing the words "John Holder, a.k.a. Jackie Curtis" and show business mementos were placed inside his coffin. Photographs of Curtis in drag were displayed on poster boards.

Upon hearing news of Curtis' death, Warhol recorded in his diary, "It was an awful day... somebody called and said that Jackie Curtis O.D.'d. He's gone. And that wasn't something I wanted to hear." The following week, Warhol said, "Somebody told me that Jackie Curtis had a long obituary in ''The New York Times''. I still keep wanting to think it was a put-on like his weddings."

Personal life

Curtis had numerous non-legal marriages between 1969 and 1984.

Curtis had arranged to marry Warhol superstar Eric Emerson as a publicity stunt on July 21, 1969. When Emerson failed to show up, Curtis married wedding guest, Stewart Eaglespeed. The mock wedding was covered by ''The Village Voice''.

On October 29, 1970 Curtis married Archie Dukshire; they divorced on April 17, 1971.

On November 27, 1971, Curtis married Hunter Cayce; they divorced on January 5, 1972.

On February 14, 1972, Curtis married actor Hiram Keller; they divorced on March 1, 1973.

On June 9, 1973, Curtis married TV personality Lance Loud; they divorced on August 7, 1975.

On December 24, 1976, Curtis married Peter Groby; they divorced on May 14, 1978.

On July 23, 1980, Curtis married Kevin McPhee; they divorced on September 14, 1981.

Curtis had his last wedding ceremony on May 26, 1984, with Gary Majchrzak as the groom and Curtis being given away by art dealer Leo Castelli.

Gender identity

Throughout his adult life, Curtis dressed as both a woman and a man. He had taken on a male persona and was auditioning for male roles the year he died. Photographer Peter Hujar took a photo of Curtis in his casket wearing a suit, lying next to a picture of himself in drag.

In an article published in ''The New York Times'' in November 1969, Curtis was quoted saying, "not a boy, not a girl, not a faggot, not a drag queen, not a transsexual — just me, Jackie ... I'm not trying to pass as a woman."

"In 1968, Jackie lived as a woman twenty-four hours a day. She sort of became Marisa Berenson," said journalist Michael Musto in his 1986 ''Village Voice'' feature on Curtis. "In 1972, she/he returned to facial hair. . . . And in 1985, Jackie looked back on that era and told me: 'I'd say, "I'm tired of being Jackie Curtis," and someone would say, "But you have to be. We need Jackie Curtis." But it was a chore and I was already turning my auto-suggestive possession into a reincarnation of James Dean. I wanted to play James Dean, so I became him.'"

Legacy

Curtis is named in Lou Reed's 1972 song " Walk on the Wild Side" which was about the 'superstars' he knew from Warhol's Factory. The verse speaks of her drug addiction and fascination with James Dean: "Jackie is just speeding away / Thought she was James Dean for a day / Then I guess she had to crash / Valium would have helped that bash".

In 2004, a documentary '' Superstar in a Housedress'' exposed some little-known facts about Curtis to a wider public. Curtis's influence on a number of people, including friends and associates such as Holly Woodlawn, Joe Dallesandro, and Penny Arcade, and observers such as David Bowie, are noted in the film. Jayne County writes of Curtis as being "the biggest influence on me at this time."

An album by Paul Serrato collecting songs from the Curtis works ''Lucky Wonderful'' and ''Vain Victory'', including the love ballad "Who Are You", which Curtis sang to Darling, was released in 2004.

Works

Stage Plays

*''Glamour, Glory and Gold'' (1967)
*''Lucky Wonderful'' (1968)
*''Amerika Cleopatra'' (1968)
*''Heaven Grand in Amber Orbit'' (1970)
*''Femme Fatale: The Three Faces of Gloria'' (1970)
*''Vain Victory: Vicissitudes of the Damned'' (1971)
*''The Trojan Women'' (1972)
*''Tyrone X'' (1979)
*''I Died Yesterday'' (1983) (play written by Nick Markovich with additional dialogue by Curtis)
*''Champagne'' (1985)

Filmography

References

Bibliography

External links

*
Website for 2004 documentary ''Jackie Curtis: Superstar In A Housedress''Article about ''Superstar In A Housedress''
*
* ttp://catalog.lamama.org/index.php/Detail/Entity/Show/entity_id/594 Curtis' page on La MaMa Archives Digital Collections

{{DEFAULTSORT:Curtis, Jackie
1947 births
1985 deaths
American LGBTQ dramatists and playwrights
LGBTQ people from New York (state)
Deaths by heroin overdose in New York (state)
Drug-related deaths in New York City
People associated with The Factory
American drag queens
Drag performers from New York City