Lori Shannon

Lori Shannon
Born Don Seymour McClean
(1938-05-18)May 18, 1938
Santa Barbara, California U.S.
Died February 13, 1984(1984-02-13) (aged 45)
San Francisco, California, U.S.
Occupation Female impersonator, actor, comedian
Height 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)

Lori Shannon (May 18, 1938 - February 13, 1984), born Don Seymour McLean, was an openly gay[1] female impersonator who was associated with the drag revues at Finocchio's club in San Francisco.[2] He wrote an entertainment column for the Bay Area Reporter.[3]

Biography

Shannon stood 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) in his heels and considered himself "a stand-up comic in a dress", who relished startling tourists with one-liners at Finocchio's.[4]

To the American television audience, Shannon was best known for portraying female impersonator Beverly LaSalle in three episodes of the CBS sitcom All in the Family. The episodes in which he appears are "Archie the Hero" (1975), "Beverly Rides Again" (1976), and "Edith's Crisis of Faith, Part 1" (1977). The character represented somewhat of a breakthrough, being the first instance of a drag queen being portrayed in a sympathetic light on U.S. television.

On February 13, 1984 Shannon died of a heart attack at the age of 45 at Mission Emergency Hospital in San Francisco.[4][5]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Romesburg, Don (2005-09-13). "Openly gay TV actors". The Advocate. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  2. ↑ Hamlin, Jesse (1999-11-04). "What a Drag: Finocchio's to Close: Cross-dressers have entertained at club for 63 years". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  3. ↑ "Interview with David De Alba". Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2007-07-03.
  4. 1 2 "Drag queen Don McLean dies". SFGate. Hearst Communications, Inc. 1984. Retrieved 2014-09-19.
  5. ↑ "Don Seymour "Lori Shannon" McLean". findagrave.com. Retrieved 2012-12-29.
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