Lady Chablis

American drag queen Emcee, film actress, comedienne and autobiographer, also known as the ‘Grand Empress’ of Savannah. A full-time transvestite and "preoperative transsexual," the Lady Chablis owned no men's clothing and took estrogen to increase her bustline but had no plans for surgery. Slender, black and attractive, Chablis became a media personality through interviews on Oprah and in USA Today, following the publication in January 1994 of John Berendt's novel, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil," in which she appeared as Frank "Chablis" Devau. She played herself in the 1997 film adaptation, directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Kevin Spacey. In her former life as Edward, she was Assistant Superintendent of the local Sunday school, speaking to the congregation and cultivating both her stage skills and her faith in her Christian saviour. Up to the age of nine, she modelled herself and her sexuality with the all-female household in which she was raised. In the summer of 1969 she met her booze-soaked father for the first time and stayed with him in Harlem. During this constrictive time, Chablis attended the local Institute of Fashion, learned to use a sewing machine and met her first gay role model. She began cross-dressing at 14. She later polished her night-club act and Emcee skills as a glamorous performer. The Lady Chablis volunteered and donated to the American Diabetes Association and various LGBT charities and events. She died on 8 September 2016 at St. Joseph's/Candler Hospital in Savannah, Georgia. Link to Wikipedia biography