Harris Glenn Milstead was born today, October 19, in 1945. He was better known by his stage name, Divine. He was an American actor, singer and drag queen. Closely associated with the independent filmmaker John Waters (link below), Divine was a character actor,
usually performing female roles in cinematic and theatrical
appearances, and adopted a female drag persona for his music career.
It seems Divine was the inspiration for Ursula the Sea Witch, the Walt Disney character created for the film, The Little Mermaid. Early on, The Little Mermaid’s directors and animators created several
iterations of Ursula. One was a manta ray inspired by Joan Collins.
Another was a “beautiful but deadly” scorpion fish, recalled director
John Musker. None worked, until an animator named Rob Minkoff drew a
vampy overweight matron who everyone agreed looked a lot like Divine (links below).
created by Rob Minkoff
A screenshot of final scene in the film Pink Flamingos, showing the scene which caused outrage and earned the film its reputation, dominated the career of actor Divine. In this scene, Babs eats fresh dog feces for the camera.
Babs (Divine)
Pink Flamingos - 1972
In 2013 there was a documenary made by Jeffrey Schwarz about Divine, entitled, I Am Divine, with clips from his films and interviews. The film features extensive contemporary interviews with Waters, as well
as Divine's mother Frances Milstead, and surviving members of the Dreamlanders.
With a completely committed in-your-face style, he blurred the line between performer and personality, and revolutionized pop culture. I Am Divine is a biographical portrait that charts the legendary icon's emotional complexities and rise to infamy (link below).
YouTube links:
Pink Flamingos in 5 Minutes
Pink Flamingos ~ Divine gets a birthday present
~ Live homicide
Dawn Davenport - Cha Cha Heels for Christmas
Divine - The Filthiest Person Alive
Movies That Shook the World: Pink Flamingos (21 min., 32 sec.)
I Am Divine trailer
Divine on The Late Show 1988
created by Rob Minkoff
Styrous® ~ Friday, October 19, 2017
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