From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Divine (19 October 1945 – 7 March 1988), né Harris Glenn Milstead, was an American actor, singer and drag queen. Described by People magazine as the "Drag Queen of the Century", Divine often performed female roles in both cinema and theater and also appeared in women's clothing in musical performances. Even so, he considered himself to be a character actor and performed male roles in a number of his later films. He was often associated with independent filmmaker John Waters and starred in ten of Waters's films, usually in a leading role. Concurrent with his acting career, he also had a successful career as a disco singer during the 1980s, at one point being described as "the most successful and in-demand disco performer in the world." Born in Baltimore, Maryland, into a conservative, wealthy middle class family, he became involved with John Waters and his acting troupe, the Dreamlanders, in the mid-1960s and starred in a number of Waters's early films such as Mondo Trasho, Multiple Maniacs, Pink Flamingos and Female Trouble. These films have since become cult classics. In the 1970s, Milstead made the transition to theater and appeared in a number of productions, including Women Behind Bars and The Neon Woman, while continuing to star in such films as Polyester, Lust in the Dust and Hairspray. The New York Times said of Milstead's '80s films: "Those who could get past the unremitting weirdness of Divine's performance discovered that the actor/actress had genuine talent, including a natural sense of comic timing and an uncanny gift for slapstick." He was also described as "one of the few truly radical and essential artists of the century… was an audacious symbol of man's quest for liberty and freedom." Since his death, Divine has remained a cult figure, particularly with those in the LGBT community. Description above from the Wikipedia article Divine (actor), licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia
Movie | My Life with the Waters | Self | 2025 |
Series | Kumusta Bro? | 2022-07-30 | |
Movie | Disclosure | Edna Turnblad (archive footage) | 2020-06-19 |
Movie | Gully Boy: Live In Concert | Himself | 2019-02-14 |
Movie | Howard | Dawn Davenport / Earl Peterson (archive footage) | 2018-04-22 |
Movie | The System | Poet | 2018-09-28 |
Movie | Studio 54 | Self (archive footage) | 2018-06-15 |
Movie | BEAT. Contour. Snatched. How Drag Queens Shaped the Biggest Makeup Trends | 2018-12-11 | |
Movie | Tab Hunter Confidential | Self (archive footage) | 2015-03-15 |
Movie | I Am Divine | Self (archive footage) | 2013-03-09 |
Movie | The British Guide to Showing Off | Self (archive footage) | 2011-11-11 |
Movie | Never Sleep Again: The Elm Street Legacy | Self (archive footage) | 2010-05-04 |
Series | Girls and Boys - Sex and British Pop | Self | 2005-10-23 |
Movie | The Cockettes | Self (archive footage) | 2002-01-16 |
Movie | Divine Trash | Self | 2000-03-31 |
Movie | In Bad Taste | Self (archive footage) | 1999-09-03 |
Movie | Soul Ache | Actriz cantante (Singer actress) | 1998-08-14 |
Movie | Rhythm Divine - History of Disco Music | Self (archive footage) | 1992-09-20 |
Movie | Out of the Dark | Det. Langella | 1988-06-02 |
Movie | Hairspray | Edna Turnblad / Arvin Hodgepile | 1988-02-26 |
Movie | Queen: Magic Years - A Visual Anthology | Self | 1987-11-30 |
Movie | Divine Waters | Self | 1985-01-01 |
Movie | Trouble in Mind | Hilly Blue | 1985-12-11 |
Movie | Lust in the Dust | Rosie Velez | 1985-03-01 |
Movie | Polyester | Francine Fishpaw | 1981-05-29 |
Movie | The Alternative Miss World | Self - Guest of Honour | 1980-09-18 |
Movie | Tally Brown, New York | 1979-05-04 | |
Movie | Underground and Emigrants | Self | 1976-10-25 |
Movie | Female Trouble | Dawn Davenport / Earl Peterson | 1974-10-04 |
Movie | Pink Flamingos | Divine / Babs Johnson | 1972-03-17 |
Movie | Multiple Maniacs | Lady Divine | 1970-04-10 |
Movie | The Diane Linkletter Story | Diane Linkletter | 1970-04-10 |
Movie | Mondo Trasho | Divine / Greaser in Alley | 1969-03-14 |
Movie | Eat Your Makeup | Jacqueline Kennedy | 1968-02-23 |
Movie | Roman Candles | Party Guest / Man with Scarf | 1967-05-10 |