My Son Divine - Softcover

Milstead, Frances; Yeager, Steve; Heffernan, Kevin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1555835945 ISBN 13: 9781555835941

Publisher: Alyson Books, 2001

Synopsis

This remarkable biography-written by Divine's mother Frances Millstead, with Kevin Heffernan and Steve Yeager, the award-winning filmmakers whose documentary film Divine Trash won the Filmmakers Trophy at the 1998 Sundance Film Festival-reveals a never-before-seen side of the internationally renowned actor and drag performer. As she tells of his childhood, their long estrangement, and a heart-warming reconciliation before his death, Frances Millstead brings a mother's love and insight to the story of Glenn Harris Millstead, who would shock his way to international stardom as Divine, the star of John Waters cult films Female Trouble, Pink Flamingos, Polyester, and his breakthrough hit, Hairspray. Following him as he grows from angelic choirboy to troubled teen to flamboyant adult, this account reconciles for the first time the two sides of Divine-outrageous performer and loving son-as the legendary star's humanity is lovingly and movingly revealed through words and heretofore unpublished photos.

Features:

Hundreds of previously unpublished photographs.

8 page full color insert

Marketing Plans:

Bookstores: Posters, Postcards, Tattoos

Media targets: Entertainment Weekly, People Magazine, US Weekly, Premiere, Vanity Fair. NPR national and affiliate programs. Network morning shows.

Advance reader copies available.

Frances Millstead lives in Florida, wher she is active in a variety of civic and religious groups and works to increase acceptance for the gay and lesbian members of the Southern Baptist Convention. Kevin Heffernan is assistant professor of cinema at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, where he lives with his wife and daughter. Steve Yeager is the director of Divine Trash, On the Block, and In Bad Taste. He lives in Baltimore.

An Excerpt

Thursday, October 18, 1945, was a beautiful fall day. The doctor had told me I would give birth around the 19th. I decided to go to my mother-in-law's house so I wouldn't be alone if I went into labor. Harris dropped me off there on his way to work. Mom and I prepared dinner, and we talked and laughed about my having the baby. I was

About this title

Review

No mother wants to watch her son eat dog poop, as Frances Milstead, mother of the gifted actor and outrageous drag persona Divine (1945-1988) would agree. Divine asked her not to see the John Waters film Pink Flamingos, in which the unforgettable poop-noshing scene occurs, and she has abided by his wishes. To her credit, though, she proudly describes the scene and its aftermath, in which Divine's friends overheard him calling an emergency room to ask what diseases his 12-year-old son might have picked up from eating a dog turd ("Yes, well, he's a little retarded."). Clearly Milstead is no ordinary mother. Page after page she provides a remarkably unembarrassed view of her son's adventures on and off screen. With amusing childhood details for true devotees of Divine, plenty of new photos, and judicious quoting from other sources, such as John Waters and his friend and producer Pat Moran, My Son Divine serves as a corrective to Bernard Jay's harshly drawn Not Simply Divine, and offers a warm, entertaining version of the drag star's life. --Regina Marler

About the Author

Frances Millstead lives in Florida, where she works to increase acceptance for gay and lesbian members of the Southern Baptist Convention. Kevin Heffernan is a professor of cinema at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, where he lives with his wife and daughter. Steve Yeager is the director of Divine Trash, On the Block, and In Bad Taste. He lives in Baltimore.

Edition details

• Publisher: Alyson Books
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 1555835945
• ISBN 13: 9781555835941
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 192