Blog Posts and Podcast Notes



Podcast Kolby LaBree Podcast Kolby LaBree

The Podcast: BellingQueerstory

Since June is Pride month and it has an extra week, we made an extra extra episode. Well it’s extra long that’s for sure!  We tried to cram in as much BellingQueerstory as we could into one hour plus a few. This is a big gay overview of queer Bellingham history as we know it.

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Betty Pages Kolby LaBree Betty Pages Kolby LaBree

Julian Eltinge: The Original Drag Superstar

In 1913 the Bellingham Herald announced: “Theater-goers have a treat in store next week when Julian Eltinge is scheduled to play at the Metropolitan Theater in his musical success, ‘The Fascinating Widow.’” Often compared today to RuPaul of “Drag Race” fame, Julian Eltinge was the most famous female impersonator to grace Bellingham’s stages in the early 1900s. 

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Betty Pages Kolby LaBree Betty Pages Kolby LaBree

Huntress

At the turn of the 20th century, a boy from small town Iowa chose the stage name “Huntress” and followed his dreams, using his many artistic skills to find success. Imagine Huntress rolling on a sparkling snowball across the vaudeville stage of the Grand Theatre in Bellingham in 1905.

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History Repeats: The Criminalization of Gender Nonconformity

Last fall when I started thinking of ideas for columns for the Betty Pages, I was excited to write interesting stories about early drag performers here in our corner of the world. However writing about these stories has taken on a weightier context as a wave of anti-drag hysteria has escalated across the country, and bills designed to restrict and prohibit drag performances work their way through state legislatures.

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Betty Pages, Historical Research Kolby LaBree Betty Pages, Historical Research Kolby LaBree

Mr. Noel Wore a Dress and Welcomed the Guests

The marker was a small reminder that issues of gender identity are not new and that drag shows existed here in Bellingham at the turn of the previous century. The marker has been lost, and the historical record of Joseph Noel’s life is sparse. We can keep telling what we know of his story: Mr. Noel wore a dress and welcomed the guests.

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Events, Tours Kolby LaBree Events, Tours Kolby LaBree

Pilot Pride Tours!

We have been working on amassing as much local LGBTQ related Belling-history as possible over the years. This is an ongoing project to which we are dedicated! We are excited to share what we know thus far with y’all in a free PILOT tour this weekend during Bellingham PRIDE.

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