To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar is an LGBTQ film that highlights goodness at a time when that is necessary.
When I first watched Beeban Kidron’s comedy To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar in 1995, I had no idea that 30 years later, I would have a blended family with six kids, five of whom would be transgender. While the experiences of drag queens and trans people are not identical, this film was absolutely part of my process of breaking free from my conservative background and seeing the beauty in different gender expressions.
To Wong Foo is part road trip movie, part fish out of water movie. When Vida (Patrick Swayze) and Noxeema (Wesley Snipes) win an opportunity to compete for a national drag queen title, they cash in their plane tickets to California and purchase a used convertible so they can bring the struggling “drag princess” Chi-Chi (John Leguizamo) with them. On their trip, they encounter the bigoted police officer, Sheriff Dollard (Chris Penn), who sexually assaults Vida. The girls escape but find more problems when their car breaks down, and they need to spend a few days in a small town. They find refuge in a small bed and breakfast run by Carol Ann (Stockard Channing), a woman Vida befriends. Vida quickly realizes that Carol Ann is being abused by her husband, Virgil (Arliss Howard).
As the drag queens settle into the town, they venture out into the community, spreading a bit of their magic on the drab life they see before them. Chi-Chi develops a crush on a local boy, Bobby Ray (Jason London). Noxeema grows close to Clara (Alice Drummond), a woman who stopped speaking after her husband died but opens up when Noxeema starts talking about classic Hollywood stars.
The women in the town quickly warm to these new, sophisticated ladies from New York City, and there is some question as to whether or not they understand that these are drag queens, not cis women. But regardless, they embrace them and invite them to help organize their annual Strawberry Festival. They have “A Day with the Girls,” where they get their hair done, choose new outfits, and top it off with an iced tea at the small restaurant in town.
My acceptance of the LGBTQ community came slower than that of this small town. My upbringing and religious circle taught me that there was something wrong with “those people,” and when I began to question that, my church told me that my emotions weren’t trustworthy. It took me nearly a decade to reject the beliefs I had grown up with in favor of a more inclusive perspective. I know now that the woman who loves people more broadly is better than the woman who lived in fear and judgment of those different from her.
To Wong Foo is a bit of a spiritual parent to shows like Schitt’s Creek or Clean Slate, in which LGBTQ people find acceptance in spaces where one might not expect them to find it – small towns where we expect things like homophobia and transphobia running rampant, but instead we see that the vast majority of folks just want to be safe and happy and want that for others as well. It is a kind of aspirational film that doesn’t entirely ignore the dangers posed to the LGBTQ community but focuses more on the ways that the townspeople and the drag queens make each other better.
At nearly two hours, To Wong Foo could stand some trimming, but as I watched it, I couldn’t tell you where. Do you cut out the precious moment when Robin Williams has a brief cameo to swap out their tickets? Do you cut the scene where Noxeema and Vida are afraid to stop at the hotel because they are worried about being attacked? Do you cut out the scene where Vida drives past her childhood home and sees her mother, who then turns her back on her child again? There are plenty of moments that aren’t strictly necessary for the plot that still round out these characters in a more beautiful way that has stuck with me for decades.
The performances themselves are so well done. The three leads were at the top of their game in 1995, and taking a role like this could have been unserious work, but they give everything to these characters. At no point do these feel like men in dresses; instead, they transform into drag queens with fully formed personalities. There are jokes, to be sure, but the characters themselves aren’t the punchline. Writer Douglas Carter Beane, a gay man, created a story that is fanciful and realistic, allowing these actors to do something incredible.
In a scene late in the movie, Carol Ann and Vida become friends, and Vida feels pressure to tell her the truth. Before Vida can say anything, Carol Ann mentions that only men have Adam’s apples and that she saw Vida had one. Vida asks, “So you know?” And Carol Ann replies, “I know that I am very fortunate to have a lady friend who just happens to have an Adam’s apple.”
As I see the attacks against trans people in my country and around the world, I often feel afraid for the trans people in my life. Will they be safe? Will they be loved? Will they be able to access the treatment that saves them? Will the abusers and bullies like Virgil and Sherrif Dollard win, or will my friends and family members just be able to live their lives in peace?
But then I remember that the only characters that are a joke are Virgil and Dollard. Make no mistake, they are scary. The power they wield is not insignificant. But when they try to point at the drag queens as the ones to fear, the townspeople begin to see who the real threat is and run them off. Yes, they have power, but it is fleeting.
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar isn’t a perfect movie, but it certainly was the perfect movie for me and my journey. In these dark days, maybe a little glitter and glamour will be perfect for you as well.
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar is now available to watch on digital and on demand.
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