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The Vampire's Lair
The Kenny Kerr Show at the 12th Air
Command
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On Sunday night, February 22, 1998 at the 12th Air
Command in Philadelphia,
I had the pleasure of witnessing one of the finest Barbra Streisand
impersonations
I had ever seen, performed by "Mr. Kenny Kerr," one of the most
celebrated female impersonators of our time. What led up to that point ranged
from pedestrian to reasonably good efforts. The Vegas showtune shtick never
really impressed me and Kerr's voice was too nasally at times. Furthermore,
his big yellow feather headdress and boa that he jokingly remarked as making
him look like Big Bird seemed out of place in a little space like the 12th
Air Command.
It wasn't his fault, though. The sound and lighting systems were poor.
The lights casted ungrateful shadows upon his aging face. A sea of reverb
drowned out his otherwise nasally voice and the pops, feedback, and squawks
from the surrounding speakers didn't help the situation, either. It was
a situation that many performers routinely find themselves in and only the
best and most experienced ones could rise above the occasion and turn something
out of nothing.
Which Kenny did. |
If it wasn't for those fabulous dresses, costumes, and
accessories Kenny
wore, I think much of the audience would have felt stir crazy. He arrived
over an hour late, which did not hold well with most of the audience. Did
Kenny himself look good? No, not with his weathered face, but I don't think
that his appearance was the focal point of his acts. After all, he has been
doing this for over 30 years and there was a time that he was considered
fairly gorgeous. Kenny did look good as Barbra, I will admit. The hair,
the nails, and Barbra's very defining and dramatic features were all there.
Kenny's first-ever drag performance was as Barbra Streisand lip synching
to "Don't Rain on My Parade" at the age of 15 (Kenny is now 45).
>From what we are told, Barbra Streisand likes Kenny's impersonations of
her. Barbra is usually not too fond of impersonations of her because of
the emphasis on her crossed eyes and arm motions, however, Kenny says that
Barbra actually likes his version of her because it is tastefully done.
Kenny proudly states that to date, he has the only autographed photo of
Barbra in the world.
The show started with Kenny singing several Vegas showtunes. I looked
around and could tell the audience wasn't impressed. A question and answer
segment followed, which gave audience members a chance to find out what
makes this multi-millionaire tick. When asked if he prefers lip synching
over singing, Kenny replied, "I'd rather be a first-rate me than a
second-rate someone else." Lots of cheering followed that response. |
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Kenny's roots are in the Philadelphia/South Jersey area. He attended
the Cedar Brook Elementary School and Edgewood High School where he studied
hairdressing afterhours in downtown Philadelphia. Kenny now lives in a mansion
in Las Vegas and has neighbors such as Gladys Knight, David Cassidy, and
Mike Tyson. He currently performs live at the Debbie Reynolds Hotel Casino,
Las Vegas, on Tuesday nights. Kenny has appeared on Sally Jesse Raphael,
Montel, and The Late Show.
During one of the intermissions, we are treated to a couple of videos
displaying Kenny's life in all its grandeur, from his terribly large mansion
with all of its fine accoutrements to his quaint little office filled with
award after award for outstanding female impersonation to his extremely
cool Mercedes convertible that his butler prepares for him. This man has
lived the good life And, with all of Kenny's open gaiety, he still manages
to raise a 13-year old son. How's that for greatness? I could hear the whispers
in the audience, "What?! Did he turn straight for a couple of years?"
Perhaps so.
Kenny followed the questions and answers with a respectable rendition
of Harry Connick, Jr.'s "It Had To Be You." His rendition of Billie
Holiday wasn't too memorable. And the bitch queen jokes interspersed throughout
the evening... well... let's just say that half the audience was quite offended
with his tasteless racial remarks and Holier Than Thou attitude while the
other half laughed hysterically. That's the sign of a good bitch queen,
but not the sign of a queen who wants to earn enough tips for her charity
to make her tour through Philadelphia worthwhile. Some of the bigger tips
ended up going to one of the other female impersonators. Can the jokes,
Kenny. This is Philly.
There was a touching moment between Kenny and his 77-year old father
who was in the audience and had never seen any of his shows until now. In
fact, Kenny was not very close to his father after his parents got divorced
when Kenny was 18. Throughout the evening, his father looked miserable,
as if he wanted to get up and leave. An audience member got Kenny's father
to make a statement about how he felt about his son and his son's success.
I think he came up with a politically correct story that somehow tied in
with the subject of Kenny's first-ever drag performance. Think about it:
don't rain on my parade. Kenny's father was no fool. He wanted to
get out alive. Kenny's sister was sitting next to the father, elbowed him,
and remarked, "Be nice," before he made his speech. I will spare
you the details of the speech, but let's just say it elicited a very positive
response from the audience.
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Some local big-name celebrities were in attendance.
Among the celebs
were "Mr. Halloween" Henri David, who emceed the show,
drag mothers Les Harrison and Joanne, reigning "Mr. Leather
Philadelphia 1997" Donna Mae, Vicki, and a retro-looking Audrey Hepburn
look-alike.
Henri has strong ties with the drag community. He hosts all of the major
drag events in Philadelphia and, from what I've heard, he was a master gender
illusionist himself some years ago. Kenny recalls that one of his first
and fondest memories of being in a dress was with Henri.
The grande drag mother herself, Les Harrison, was also present. Kenny
acknowledged Les to be his "drag mother," a term used to describe
an older, more experienced queen who has taken you under her wing to teach
you the drag trade. Les is one of the "living legends" in the
Philadelphia drag scene. Everyone who is anyone in Philadelphia drag owes
his or her start to one of Les Harrison, Joey Venuti, or Paris Dupree. Paris,
to my knowledge, is a New York transplant, so Les and Joey are the true
big-name drag mothers in Philly. Joey passed away a couple of years ago
so now Les holds the reigns on the serious drag talent in Philadelphia.
Joanne was a somewhat heavyset blonde transsexual who had her fair share
of admirers and detractors. Among the latter were several older gay men
in the audience who whispered rude remarks that centered around Joanne's
"unidentifiable body parts." Seeing her bulge out of her skintight
top, you would be inclined to agree with them, too. |
Vicki was a younger blonde who had tagged along with Joanne. To everyone
she met, she was complaining of her toothache from her dental visit (she
probably had her molars removed a la Cher). From afar she looked good, but,
then again, from afar many queens look good. She wore a completely black
outfit with black flat-heeled boots and a gold chain belt. Not a bad thing,
but a little dated. Retro 60's and 70's is fine, but the 80's look came
and went. Her hair did look real, though, albeit a bit scraggly.
Donna Mae, the winner of the coveted Mr. Leather Philadelphia contest,
was dressed in genderfuck drag: an orange mop-like wig and black leather
straps covering an aging body. A couple of patrons remarked that Donna Mae
looked as if she had put on some weight since she had won the contest.
During Kenny's intermissions, Sandy Beach and Alona provided additional
entertainment. Sandy provided some comical relief with her innovative and
campy musical remakes of popular hit songs. Her appearance of Madonna singing
"Material Girl" could scare the bejezuz out of anyone, but that's
Sandy's point - strict camp.
Alona is about as cute and petite as yours truly. She gave her audience
two beautiful, dramatic skits and elicited quite a few yelps of admiration
for her stunning good looks and fine expressive performances. Her lip synched
performance of "One Night Only" drew squeals of admiration from
the crowd. She will no doubt develop into a great female impersonator.
Sandy Beach has a Thursday night drag show at the 12th Air Command called
the "U.S.O. Show" that has been running for quite some time now.
If Alona is performing that night, I urge you to go to the show just to
see her.
Soda Pop Buzz
The Miss Northern States Pageant is coming to the Mandell Theatre
of Drexel University on Saturday, April 11, 1998. Doors open at 6:30pm and
tickets are $25. Call Let's Do It Again Productions at (215) 563-3778
to purchase tickets. Lots of great entertainment is scheduled for the evening,
so don't miss out. I think the organizers pushed the show earlier this year
to allow patrons time to go to the clubs later in the evening.
Check out Jimmy James's dance track, "Who Wants To Be Your
Lover," on Interhit Records in major record stores everywhere. The
campy pop tune keeps sticking in my mind. Those who like Erasure's "Chains
of Love" will enjoy this one. There appear to be two versions of the
CD jacket, one with Jimmy in lesbian drag and one with him in his Marilyn
Monroe guise. Fear not if you like both. The record company just flipped
the jacket booklet backwards in half of the manufactured CD's. For those
who don't know, Jimmy James has been impersonating Marilyn for over 10 years.
He is possibly the best Marilyn there is. He looks great and he can sing
(well, sort of), too.
Woody's in Philadelphia has recently signed a bunch of great DJ's
from Boston, New York, and Miami to play on select nights. Check the place
out on the following nights: March 6, 14, and 20. Call (215) 545-1893 for
more information.
Nope, I'm not affiliated with any of the above people, places, or events.
If you would like to find out more about me (the really cute Asian girl
in the last two photos), check out my Web
site!
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