Pop Culture Retrospective Episode # 10 RuPaul: a behind the scenes look at the world's most successful Drag Queen.

I’ll be honest.  My sister was a lot cooler than me.  Yes, it’s true.  It’s okay.  I have accepted it, I have embraced it and anyone who knows the two of us, knows this is definitely true.  My sister had a way better fashion sense than me, her home decor and design was absolute perfection, her hair was always styled to the 9s while I suffered from severe cave woman hair through at least middle school and I always admired her music choices.  

Because my sister was so much cooler than me, I would often “borrow” her clothing, borrow being in quotation marks.  I also ended up with several of her CDs which probably acquired at some point when we were teenagers and have hung on to, well into my adulthood.  A few of those CDs include:  “The Immaculate Collection” by Madonna, “Happenstance” by Rachel Yamagata and “MTV Party to Go Volume 4” which I stole for the sole purpose of 1 song:  “You Better Work” by RuPaul.  She loved this song so much and so did I.  Before iTunes and god forbid Napster, if you liked a song you had to purchase a whole CD even if the rest of the songs, well, kinda sucked. Thankfully this CD was actually pretty decent, but it was definitely purchased so this song could be played on our respective boom boxes.  

My sister has always had a huge impact on my music choices throughout my whole life and I almost always listen to music whenever I am driving because, well, being a parent to young children results in significant sleep deprivation.  Recently, while driving back from the beach with my kids, “You Better Work” came on and I immediately started blasting it in the car.  My kids hate when I do that, but they must know the magic that was music from the 1990s, especially those songs loved by their Auntie Becky, whether they like it or not! I knew in that moment what my next show would be all about.  

RuPaul Andre Charles describes his current drag persona as:  “2 parts Cher, 3 parts Diana Ross, a dash of Dolly Parton, a little bit of David Bowie and James Brown, with a smattering of Bugs Bunny.”  This sentiment was one of the first things I learned about RuPaul while doing my research and I immediately knew that his story was going to be incredibly intriguing.  As it turns out, I was right.  

So grab your 7 inch heels, a bedazzled dress and an oversized wig, here we go!

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Hello and thank you so very much for tuning in to the Pop Culture Retrospective Podcast, a show inspired by, and in memory of, my big sister Rebecca and her love for all things pop-culture, especially the people, places and things of the 80s, 90s and early 00s.  My name is Amy Lewis and I am your captain aboard this pop culture time machine.

You are tuning in to Episode #10 - RuPaul.  Man, episode #10, that is just crazy! The past two or so months have just flown by, but the journey thus far has been a blast.  Thank you for being a part of it!

RuPaul Andre Charles was born on November 17, 1960 in San Diego, California.  Throughout this episode, I may go back and forth between calling him Ru or RuPaul, he answers to both!  He was named by his mother, her name was Ernestine “Toni” Charles who was originally from Louisiana.  RuPaul was named after roux, r-o-u-x which is a key ingredient in gumbo, which is a staple in Creole food. Another reason for his unique name is because RuPaul’s mother felt that he was destined to be a star.  He was raised Roman Catholic and he described himself as being a kind and well-mannered little boy. He had 3 other siblings, all were sisters. 

Growing up, it was quite apparent that RuPaul was destined to be an entertainer.  He would perform for his mother in the family’s living room.  He would pretend he was a talk show host, he would interview his sister much to his mother’s delight.  My sister and I also liked to perform for our parents in our living room, and thankfully my dad was able to capture a lot of that on tape with his humongous JVC home video camera.  We didn’t pretend to host a talk show, but we did dance and sing to Tina Turner and the one hit wonder song “Whomp There it is” when the Chicago Bulls won the NBA championship.  Early on, RuPaul learned that having a sense of humor and sort of an alter-ego would be extremely helpful in dealing with difficult situations, especially trauma.  

In various interviews I listened to or watched, RuPaul alludes to his homelife being incredibly volatile. 

He said that his parents were quote “always at war” and that their home was a “war zone.”  He alluded to domestic violence in his household as his parents were reportedly often physical with each other.  

In one despairing story, he said that during one heated argument, his mother dumped gasoline all over his father’s car while it sat in the garage.  She held a match over the car and threatened to drop it.  RuPaul and his siblings all watched this scene across the street from their house while fire trucks pulled up.  Thankfully a woman from the family’s church managed to talk his mother out of making this very dangerous decision.

Eventually, RuPaul’s parents ended up divorcing and all 4 children would go on to live with their mother.  It sounded like after the divorce, RuPaul’s father essentially abandoned the family, further adding to the trauma that the children had already experienced.  Spending so much time with 4 other women, also added to RuPaul’s desire to perform - he learned a lot about women’s fashion during his upbringing in a female dominated household and really enjoyed getting dressed up. He liked to pretend he was one of his idols like Diana Ross or Jane Fonda.  His interests were certainly unique, but as RuPaul once said:  “You were born not to fit in, but to stand out.”  

His older sister, Renetta, helped him get through their tough childhood through the power of imagination and what he called “magic.”  In one story, he said that Renetta, who was 7 years older than him, took him to a canyon in San Diego, with a blanket and a brown bag full of cookies.  She wanted to take her little brother out for a picnic.  This was a very simple gesture, but it helped RuPaul understand the power of changing your perception.  Something that was so simplistic, could really be powerful.  It taught him to think differently and that using our imaginations could take us to magical places. Older sisters really and truly are magical people, I can certainly attest to that.  My sister had an incredible imagination as a child.  She and I would play summer camp in our front entry way.  It was her idea to pretend that the two front hall closets could be our respective bunks.  She would transform our basement playroom into a classroom, with extra credit folders with worksheets scotch taped to the walls.  We also transformed our living room into a video rental store on more than one occasion.   My sister had a very creative perspective on our childhood activities, even when she was really young.  

During his teenage years, he seemed to be a bit lost.  He struggled to attend school consistently and was reportedly kicked out of his high school due to his absences.  When his sister, Renetta decided she would be moving to Georgia, RuPaul opted to join her and he attended a school for the performing arts.  

He didn’t end up graduating from this high school or high school in general, but he did meet a teacher that had a positive impact on him.  His name was Mr. Pernell and he gave RuPaul some great advice- “Don’t take life too seriously.” Coincidentally, when RuPaul received his walk on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2018, Mr. Pernell was RuPaul’s guest. 

During his early adulthood years in Atlanta, he tried to break into show business.  He began playing music with punk rock bands.  In 1982, he appeared on an Atlanta Public public access variety show. That same year he attended his very first gay pride parade ever in Atlanta which he said only had about 75 people in attendance. Soon after, he started performing as a bar dancer or with bands he was a member of, first being in RuPaul and the U-Hauls and later in the group, cough, cough, Wee Wee Pole.  Hmm.  I’m not kidding.  On the side, he also worked some odd jobs including being a used car salesman for a period of time.  He knew that he needed to go to a larger, more progressive city to help his career, so in 1987, he moved to New York. He performed in nightclubs here in drag,he was one of the first drag queens to use their actual name on stage, not a made up one. It was certainly a struggle to get by. In some reports, it was said that he had periods of homlessness, he would keep his clothing and other prized possessions in the basement of the club and would sleep elsewhere.  Feeling a bit discouraged, he moved back to California, this time to LA where one of his sisters lived.  At 28 years old, he was sleeping on his sister’s couch and at night, he would often walk the streets of Hollywood, dreaming of becoming a star.  At this time, he was plagued by dark thoughts and often questioned whether or not his life was worth living.  He was broke and he felt very alone.  Thankfully, these feelings didn’t last forever and by the early 1990s, RuPaul moved back to New York City hoping once again, to make it big. 

He began performing at a few Manhattan Night Clubs and became popular due to his flamboyant performances.  He was soon hired to perform at parties.  In 1989, he was asked to perform as a dancer in the classic B-52s music video for the hit song- “Love Shack.”  

He is dressed in drag for this music video of course and is featured in a few brief clips.  A bit of a backstory with the origins of this B-52s song - the Love Shack is actually a fictional club but the concept of the club came about from a cabin that is actually located in Georgia.  Sadly that cabin burned down in 2004.  So, I guess, no longer will anyone be able to “bang bang bang on the door baby” and after that fire, that TIN ROOF was definitely RUSTED! Get it? Cause, you know, those are lyrics from the song.

Anyways, this appearance led to some future performances in movies such as the Brady Bunch, Crooklyn and To Wong Fu.  In 1990  he was voted “Queen of Manhattan” by several nightclub owners, promoters and DJs at the annual event. 

1993 saw his next big break, but this time it came in the form of music.  Tommy Boy records picked him up to create pop music, stepping away from Punk.  Tommy Boy records is probably more well-known for producing hip hop/rap music with artists such as Digital Underground, Naughty by Nature and one of my wife’s favorite entertainers, Queen Latifah.  Thankfully though, they saw something in RuPaul and took a chance with him which proved to be an excellent choice.  The album, Supermodel of the World was released that year and one of the singles released off of that album was called Supermodel (You Better Work) which was really and truly a dance anthem (I think the song holds up very well, almost 30 years after it’s release).  It was of course very popular among gay audiences but found a lot of success in mainstream music.  The song and album were pretty successful and the song would be RuPaul’ biggest hit in his music career.  Kurt Cobain of Nirvana (of my sister’s favorite bands of all time and mine as well) apparently absolutely loved this song and the album and thought it was one of the best songs of 1993 and the two were photographed together at the MTV Video Music Awards that year.  Now that is an unlikely duo if I ever did hear of one, but man that is the most 90s thing I have heard all week! I kept thinking about what song titles could have been had they collaborated.  Perhaps “Smells Like a Teen Supermodel”? Or “Come as You Better Work”? Nirvana would go on to appear in a tv special called RuPaul’s Christmas Ball in December of 1993, just a few months before Cobain’s passing by suicide in April of 1994.  

RuPaul has gone on to have quite an extensive music career.  He has released 12 Studio albums which has included collaborations with artists such as Elton John, Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus and he’s even released a Christmas album.  

In 1994, he became the first drag Supermodel to represent MAC cosmetics in advertisements.  Part of the proceeds from the sales of the makeup went to fund AIDS research.  1994 was right around the time that we were going through the AIDS crisis in the United States, it peaked in 1995.  

In 1996, RuPaul hosted his own talk show which was on VH1, it ran for about 2 years.  He had some pretty high profile guests on the show including Cher!  His dream of being a TV host finally came true! He also hosted a radio show in 1996.  

In 1999, RuPaul won the Vito Russo Entertainer of the Year award at the GLAAD media awards.  GLAAD in case you are not familiar with the organization stands for:  Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation.  The name Vito Russo did not ring a bell, so I thought I would look up some information about who he was.  Here’s what I learned:  Vito Russo was born in 1946, he was an LGBT activist who wrote the book- “The Celluloid Closet” which covered homosexuality  in the film industry.  At a young age, he was bothered by how gay people were portrayed in the media, often in a stereotypical or negative sense.  He also witnessed the Stonewall Riots in 1969 which further deepened his desire to be an LGBT activist.  Sadly, he passed away from AIDs in 1990.  At his memorial, the attendees sang “Over the Rainbow”, I imagine there wasn’t a dry eye there.  

In the early 2000s, RuPaul’s focus was mainly on music.  He has some push back from the gay media during this time who just wanted him to focus on performing and fashion but he did have some successful dance hits during this time including:  “Looking Good, Feeling Gorgeous” and “WorkOut.”  

2009 saw one of the most pivotal moments of RuPaul’s career- the premiere of his television brain child- “RuPaul’s Drag Race” which originally aired on the LOGO network.  In the show, drag queens compete to be American’s next drag superstar. 

It took a bit of time to gain momentum, but the show has been very successful overall and is credited with aiding in bringing attention to the LGBT and drag communities who are often discriminated against and misunderstood.  The show has had several spin offs, but the main show continues to be most popular. 

More recently, RuPaul has hosted a podcast and he hosted Saturday Night Live earlier this year and his episode was quite hilarious.  I think my favorite skit is called “The Library” coincidentally it is set in a fictitious library in San Diego (if you remember, that is where RuPaul was born).  In the skit, RuPaul is invited to read to a group of kids and he goes through a bunch of books that she in fact judges by their covers.  He mocks the illustrator for the book ‘Madeline’ because the Eiffel tower is drawn as if it’s set in a forest, when in reality it is in a more urban/green space setting in Paris.  

The lovable Corduroy cover is also victim to scrutiny because he has “busted overalls and is trying to dress all bo-ho like Zoey Daschenel.  He says, “girl you ain’t bo-ho, you are broke (insert name of gardening tool here).”  I think this sketch is loosely based off of his role as a judge in RuPaul’s drag race.  I’ll post a link to this video in the show notes.  Again, this video, like so much from SNL, is not very child-friendly, but it’s hilarious none-the-less.     

Fun facts:

• RuPaul met his future husband, Georges LeBar, while out dancing at a nightclub called the “Limelight Discotheque”  in 1994.  He was attracted to him because he was 6’8.”  He was apparently wearing shoes with a very tall heel and was dancing like crazy.  RuPaul is 6’4.”  RuPaul’s husband is originally from Australia and is a painter.   They’ve got creativity coming out the wah-zoo! When RuPaul is not filming his TV show or other obligations, they live at Georges’ 50 acre ranch in Wyoming.  
• It takes RuPaul at least an hour and a half to do makeup and hair when readying for a drag performance.  
• RuPaul has written several books over the course of his career, the first one is called- “Lettin’ It All Hang Out:  An Autobiography” - released in 1995, “Workin’ It:  RuPaul's Guide to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Style” - released in 2010 and finally:  “GuRu” which was released in 2018.  
• RuPaul’s biggest fear is ignorant people. 
• RuPaul is a huge fan of classic cars and also luxury vehicles as he once dreamt of driving a nice vehicle when he was struggling to get by.  He owns several and part of the reason why his show is named RuPaul’s drag race is because he is a fan of that sport.  
• He describes himself as very much an introvert, but is great at pretending he is an extrovert (that is how I often describe myself).  
• Despite a lot of confusion, RuPaul identifies as a male, he is not transgendered, but rather a drag queen, two separate things.  He is very open-minded when it comes to pronouns though and has a great quote about it which seems pertinent at the moment given who he references:  “You can call me he, you can call me she, you can call me Regis and Kathy Lee (RIP Regis!).  I don’t care!  Just as long as you call me.”
• Dressing in drag is not about wanting to be a woman for RuPaul, in fact, he has no desire to even be a woman.  He said part of why he loves drag so much is because it promotes going against the status quo. He wants to push back against our male-dominated culture.  And if you’ve never seen him perform in drag, please do so as you can sense his charismatic and magnetic personality, as well as his ability to command an audience.  Further, he exudes confidence which I think is very inspiring and I know he’s had an impact on many of his fans, perhaps especially on those individuals who may be struggling with their sexuality or identity.  
• In 2017 he was included in Time Magazine’s annual list of the 100 Most Influential People.  
• He is a HUGE fan of Judge Judy and Goldie Hawn.  He holds Goldie Hawn-A-Thons about once per year.
• He has acquired so many clothes over the years that he has a condo in LA, strictly devoted to storing his extensive wardrobe!   
• Every night, RuPaul sleeps with a stuffed donkey that he found out on the street in the mid 1980s and he is missing one eye, like my real-life dog.  Darn you doggie glaucoma!   

RuPaul has an amazing sense of humor and is very insightful.  I came across a quote from him that seems to really summarize his life and profession:  “I’ve dedicated my career to fighting the mundane.  

My hope is that my career will be a shining example to children everywhere that life is more meaningful when you are not afraid to see all of the colors of the rainbow.”  

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I hope you have enjoyed the look back on the life of RuPaul, the most commercially successful drag queen of all time, with a net worth that is reportedly over 60 million dollars. If you are enjoying the PCRP, please consider subscribing on whichever podcast platform you use.  Please also consider rating the show on iTunes or Apple podcasts, it helps the show out a lot! Thank you so much for tuning in and for your support.  Please tell your friends and family about this show!  Please feel free to contact me, my email address is:  popcultureretrospective@gmail.com or you can tweet me, I’m @popcultureretroI hope you will join me for my next show, where we will be discussing the history behind one of the most well-known toy companies of all time, Fisher Price. My sister and I owned several Fisher Price toys growing up and they have survived decades of use and hold a lifetime of memories.  Until then, BK, BS and HOTYM.