In the world of British gay trailblazers, there was no one quite like Danny La Rue. While most other female impersonators shied away from making what they were doing explicitly gay, La Rue spent his life on the edge, becoming incredibly popular while putting his sexuality as close to the surface as society would allow.
Now Variety has revealed that the production company Leopardrama is planning a biopic about La Rue, with a script by Martyn Hesford (who also wrote Fantabulosa about Kenneth Williams).
Danny La Rue was born Daniel Patrick Carroll in Cork City, Ireland in 1927, and made a career out of his vaudeville female impersonator act, becoming increasingly famous during the 60s with impressions of the likes Zsa Zsa Gabor and Elizabeth Taylor. By the 70s he was one of the most popular entertainers in Britain, even though both he and his act were on the edge of being openly gay – something that was incredibly unusual at the time. Until that point camp hadn’t gone much further than asexual innuendo, but La Rue put sex back into camp. Behind the scenes he was caught in a web of relationships, including his manager, costume designer and his lover, Jack Hanson.
James Burstall, the CEO of the company behind the film, commented, “Danny’s life is such a fascinating story because he was a pioneer and he blurred boundaries of sex and taste.”
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