Harris Glenn Milstead (October 19, 1945 – March 7, 1988) was best known for his drag persona, Divine.
Early life
Born in Towson, Maryland to Bernard and Diana Frances Milstead, at the age of 12 the family moved to Lutherville, a suburb of Baltimore. John Waters was a childhood friend who lived six houses down the street.
Film career
Milstead starred in a number of films and was part of the regular cast known as the Dreamlanders. The Dreamlanders appeared in many of John Waters' earlier works such as Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble, Polyester, and Hairspray. Repeating their successful pairing in Polyester, in 1985 Divine appeared opposite Tab Hunter in their bigger hit Lust in the Dust.
He is also remembered as a major character in the documentary homage Divine Trash by Steve Yeager, covering the life and work of John Waters.
In the 1980s, Milstead's dance-music records were hits through America, Europe, and Australia. The typical progressive type of synthesizer disco music was composed, created, performed and produced by Bobby Orlando. In Britain his Stock, Aitken and Waterman record "You Think You're A Man" was his most successful hit, reaching #16.
In 1988, the British film The Fruit Machine (1988), a/k/a Wonderland (USA), utilized Milstead's songs in a nightclub disco dance sequence that showcased an early Robbie Coltrane in drag as "Annabelle", the club's owner (a cross between Divine and Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz).
Late in his career, Milstead also played in non-drag roles in his last three films: Trouble in Mind, Hairspray, and Out of the Dark. In Hairspray he played two roles, one male and one female (which he had first done in the earlier Female Trouble).
Sudden death
In 1988, Milstead was chosen to portray the dual character of Peggy Bundy's Mother and her Uncle Otto on the new FOX prime-time series Married With Children. Quite unexpectedly, he died at age 42 from sleep apnea in Los Angeles, California. The cause was attributed to his obesity. The producers of Married With Children sent flowers to the funeral, along with a humorous card that read, "If you didn't want to do the show, you could have just SAID something!"
His funeral in Towson, Maryland was preceded by a funeral procession attended by thousands.
Filmography
· Roman Candles (1966)
· Eat Your Makeup (1968)
· The Diane Linkletter Story (1969)
· Mondo Trasho (1969)
· Multiple Maniacs (1970)
· Pink Flamingos (1972)
· Female Trouble (1974)
· Underground and Emigrants (1976) (documentary)
· Tally Brown, New York (1979) (documentary)
· The Alternative Miss World (1980) (documentary)
· Polyester (1981)
· Lust in the Dust (1984)
· I Wanna Be a Beauty Queen (1985) (documentary)
· Divine Waters (1985) (documentary)
· Trouble in Mind (1985)
· The Fruit Machine, a/k/a Wonderland (USA), (1988) (soundtrack)
· Hairspray (1988)
· Out of the Dark (1989)
Trivia
According to "The Making of The Little Mermaid" documentary included on the 2006 re-release of Disney film The Little Mermaid, Divine was in part the inspiration for the design of the character Ursula the Sea Witch.
Divine at IMDB
www.imdb.com/name/nm0001145/
The Divine Page
www.dreamlandnews.com/divine/
Divine at Yahoo
music.yahoo.com/ar-312820
The Divine Worshipeprs Tribe
divinelove.tribe.net/
The Wonderful World of John Waters
divinewaters.tribe.net/
Early life
Born in Towson, Maryland to Bernard and Diana Frances Milstead, at the age of 12 the family moved to Lutherville, a suburb of Baltimore. John Waters was a childhood friend who lived six houses down the street.
Film career
Milstead starred in a number of films and was part of the regular cast known as the Dreamlanders. The Dreamlanders appeared in many of John Waters' earlier works such as Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble, Polyester, and Hairspray. Repeating their successful pairing in Polyester, in 1985 Divine appeared opposite Tab Hunter in their bigger hit Lust in the Dust.
He is also remembered as a major character in the documentary homage Divine Trash by Steve Yeager, covering the life and work of John Waters.
In the 1980s, Milstead's dance-music records were hits through America, Europe, and Australia. The typical progressive type of synthesizer disco music was composed, created, performed and produced by Bobby Orlando. In Britain his Stock, Aitken and Waterman record "You Think You're A Man" was his most successful hit, reaching #16.
In 1988, the British film The Fruit Machine (1988), a/k/a Wonderland (USA), utilized Milstead's songs in a nightclub disco dance sequence that showcased an early Robbie Coltrane in drag as "Annabelle", the club's owner (a cross between Divine and Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz).
Late in his career, Milstead also played in non-drag roles in his last three films: Trouble in Mind, Hairspray, and Out of the Dark. In Hairspray he played two roles, one male and one female (which he had first done in the earlier Female Trouble).
Sudden death
In 1988, Milstead was chosen to portray the dual character of Peggy Bundy's Mother and her Uncle Otto on the new FOX prime-time series Married With Children. Quite unexpectedly, he died at age 42 from sleep apnea in Los Angeles, California. The cause was attributed to his obesity. The producers of Married With Children sent flowers to the funeral, along with a humorous card that read, "If you didn't want to do the show, you could have just SAID something!"
His funeral in Towson, Maryland was preceded by a funeral procession attended by thousands.
Filmography
· Roman Candles (1966)
· Eat Your Makeup (1968)
· The Diane Linkletter Story (1969)
· Mondo Trasho (1969)
· Multiple Maniacs (1970)
· Pink Flamingos (1972)
· Female Trouble (1974)
· Underground and Emigrants (1976) (documentary)
· Tally Brown, New York (1979) (documentary)
· The Alternative Miss World (1980) (documentary)
· Polyester (1981)
· Lust in the Dust (1984)
· I Wanna Be a Beauty Queen (1985) (documentary)
· Divine Waters (1985) (documentary)
· Trouble in Mind (1985)
· The Fruit Machine, a/k/a Wonderland (USA), (1988) (soundtrack)
· Hairspray (1988)
· Out of the Dark (1989)
Trivia
According to "The Making of The Little Mermaid" documentary included on the 2006 re-release of Disney film The Little Mermaid, Divine was in part the inspiration for the design of the character Ursula the Sea Witch.
Divine at IMDB
www.imdb.com/name/nm0001145/
The Divine Page
www.dreamlandnews.com/divine/
Divine at Yahoo
music.yahoo.com/ar-312820
The Divine Worshipeprs Tribe
divinelove.tribe.net/
The Wonderful World of John Waters
divinewaters.tribe.net/
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