If you’re feeling nostalgic for the majesty and gentility of “Downton Abbey,” you can get a little taste of it with the beauty and grandeur you’ll find at the Devon Horse Show and County Fair.
The 10-day event includes world-class equestrian competitions, carriage competitions and mini boutiques set up in small cottages that offer everything from leather chaps (I won’t tell if you don’t use them for riding) to antiques to the latest fashions. For kids big and small there’s the midway, featuring a Ferris wheel, carousel, games and fair foods. There is also a variety of special programs through the show run. If none of that grabs you, there’s something uber sexy about a man or woman in tight britches and leather boots.
This week’s profile is one of those sexy riders, Carson Kressley, a gay icon you know from shows like “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” and “Dancing with the Stars.” What you may not know is that Kressley is a talented equestrian and all-around good guy.
PGN: OK, I knew you were a rider, but didn’t realize how accomplished! You won the U.S. World Cup Saddle Seat championship in 2009.
CK: I did and that was probably my favorite world-championship win. I’ve won a couple of world titles on different horses, including the Friesian breed of horses. It’s my passion.
PGN: I love Friesians! How did you get into riding?
CK: I’ve been very lucky in that I grew up in a family very involved with horses. My grandparents had a pony farm outside of Allentown. At one point, they had several-hundred Shetland ponies. They raised and sold them and showed them pretty extensively and successfully. As a teenager, I loved ponies but I really wanted a horse and I wound up in the Saddlebred horse industry.
PGN: Well, that makes sense; they are pretty flashy.
CK: Yes, they’re the supermodels of the equestrian world, with the pretty tails and the extravagant way they move. They’re so athletic and fun to ride. I love their look and personalities. I find there’s no other breed that’s as fun to ride as a good Saddle horse.
PGN: Tell me a little about growing up in Claussville.
CK: Well, it’s a small town right outside of Allentown. I’ve joked that we grew up practically Amish; my family is Pennsylvania German and my ancestors, mostly farmers, have lived there for hundreds of years. Even though I grew up in a pretty sheltered place, I got to travel a lot, going to horse shows and auctions with my grandparents. Other than that, it was a pretty quiet upbringing. I was pretty much a farm kid. I spent a lot of time with the horses, literally sitting in the hay troughs watching them eat. It may sound like a sad after-school special but it was actually a pretty great way to grow up. Most kids don’t have the opportunity to be around animals like that so I was grateful to have been able to experience it.
PGN: Any siblings?
CK: Yes, a brother and a sister. My sister is also involved in showing horses and she runs the family farm. My niece also competes so there are now several generations of us doing this. One of the great things about showing horses, especially Saddlebreds, is that little kids can compete as well as someone in their 80s! William Shatner still competes and he’s 85 years old. There aren’t too many sports that you can compete in your entire life.
PGN: When did you start getting into fashion?
CK: You know I always loved clothes and the power of transformation that they hold. I have a liberal-arts degree from Gettysburg College and I knew I wanted to move to New York. Instead of thinking about what career I wanted, I thought about what companies it would be fun to work for. Ralph Lauren was on that list so I managed to get myself a job there working for Ralph Lauren’s brother, who runs the men’s design division of the company. While I had a propensity for fashion and clothing, I really learned on the job there. In addition to learning great taste and great style, I learned about the importance of hard work and having a sense of urgency. I learned a lot about production and licensing, that kind of thing. Being his brother’s assistant, I got to see and learn all aspects of the business.
PGN: I read that at Gettysburg you were a frat boy.
CK: Ha. Yes, but I was in a nerdy fraternity; it was more of a service organization. While other groups were doing panty raids, we were having canned-food drives.
PGN: When did you come out? I understand you were a late bloomer.
CK: Yeah, probably. I think with my personality and my mannerisms, it probably wasn’t necessary for me to “come out” but it didn’t happen officially until I was around 30. I was cast in “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy” so that probably would have been a giveaway. It was time to tell everyone.
PGN: Where do you think you got your personal sense of style? Were you into old movies? A favorite TV show?
CK: Growing up in the ’70s, it was more about my mom and my sister; they were really into clothing. I distinctly remember my mother going a friend’s house for a dinner party and wearing a long cocktail gown, very stylish. I remember watching Carol Burnett and the Bob Mackie gowns she wore on her show. But it was mostly watching the process of my mom and sister dressing up that prompted my interest in fashion and realizing that it was something important.
PGN: What was a favorite piece of clothing as a kid?
CK: I remember going to Bamberger’s in the early ’80s to get my first suit for church. It was a blue pinstripe suit with a white shirt and a red and blue striped tie. It was very simple and classic and good-looking and it planted the seed for my love of all things Ralph Lauren. Then of course I remember wanting designer jeans, Calvin Klein and Jordache and Sasson, which were all the rage when I was in fourth grade. I did get my Calvin’s, which was probably my original coming-out gesture.
PGN: You spoke about the transformative nature of clothes. You’ve done so many shows that illustrate it: “Queer Eye,” “Carson Nation” and “How to Look Good Naked.” Was there a particular caterpillar-to-butterfly moment that sticks out for you?
CK: I think that on every makeover show that I’ve done, including makeovers on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” the essential thing is helping people discover clothing that will help them feel the most like themselves but pulling it together in a way that will make them feel confident and powerful. “How to Look Good Naked” had the most powerful moments because women are scrutinized so much more for what they wear and how they look. Helping someone unleash their inner beauty through the way they present themselves to the world was really amazing. There were some great transformations on that show that I’m very proud of.
PGN: “Queer Eye” was so cutting-edge. You were at the forefront of gay acceptance in the media. Did you get much pushback?
CK: Yes, that was 13 years ago so there was some pushback. A lot of networks passed on the show; they weren’t interested whatsoever. Some stations liked the show but wanted to change the name. “Queer Eye” was too edgy for them but, credit to the show’s creators, Dave Metzler and David Collins, they stuck to their guns. They felt that “queer” meant a different point of view, to be different or special or extraordinary, and they wanted to reclaim the word not as a slur but as something to be proud of. There was one network in Oklahoma that wouldn’t air the show; they ran old episodes of “Coach” instead. After a couple of weeks, the people in the town were like, “Listen, we’ve had enough of Craig T. Nelson. Please let us have the gays.” I think the show was very subversive not intentionally, it was just very disarming. Five guys who (hopefully) people responded well to, who were just trying to help our straight brothers get the girl or the job they wanted. For a lot of folks, we were the first gay people they knew because they got to know us on television. Television is a medium that’s very intimate because we are in their living rooms and bedrooms. Families watched it together and we were a positive introduction for a lot of people. I’ve had strangers come up to me and say, “I never knew any gay people before” and I’d say, “What? You’ve never had your hair done, you’ve never been on an airplane? Come on!” But people would come up to us all the time and say, “We think you guys are pretty cool and we really like you.” That’s the power of media, getting to see people, whether they be gay or lesbian or bisexual or transgender, just living their lives and realizing that we’re more alike than they thought. It’s very empowering and it helps break down stereotypes. It helps to expand our base of allies. When you know someone, you treat them a little kinder.
PGN: I think you and Ellen presented that all-American-kid persona that opened a lot of doors for everyone.
CK: Well thanks. Unlike actors playing a character in a TV show or movie, in reality TV you really get to see the person for who they are so people really feel they know you.
PGN: Out of the five guys, you certainly were the most intimate with the straight guys, as you helped them find new underwear or tucked in their shirts.
CK: For sure! And I’m very touchy-feely, very huggy and up in people’s grills but that’s how I roll. I like to embrace people both emotionally and physically. That’s how I communicate. And I think it’s what gave the show a little of its edge, that I wasn’t afraid to go up to some big, scary, hairy straight guy and give him a hug. I was like, “Listen, we’re just shopping for clothes here. There’s no reason to be tense.” And eventually it started breaking down barriers.
PGN: It’s amazing to me to now turn on the TV and find straight guys talking about another man’s physique or Bruno on “Dancing with the Stars” complimenting guys on their firm butts and it’s no big deal. I think you paved the way for some of that.
CK: I hope so. It would be nice to think I could take a little bit of credit for some of it, that being myself on TV exactly the way I am could help make people comfortable. We’re all different in our own ways but unfortunately a lot of our community had to stuff it down for a long time. Being able to express myself fully on that show was a great gift.
PGN: Speaking of “Dancing with the Stars,” what was the hardest part and the worst part of being on the show?
CK: Well I’m a terrible dancer, so the dancing was the hard part. Fortunately, I’m a hard worker and I put in extra hours just to be passable and I never forgot any of my routines. I approached it with the attitude, “I’m not a good dancer but I do like to have fun,” so I approached every dance with a sense of joy and creativity. I had amazing costumes and an amazing dance partner. There was no pressure for me because I knew I wasn’t going to win, I was just there to have fun and I think that showed. People really responded to it and I was there much longer than I anticipated. I’d told my friends and family, “Come to the first show because I won’t be here long” and then I made it through week two, week three, week four and five. I couldn’t believe it!
PGN: Why do you think the show has touched people so much?
CK: I think people like seeing the journey, seeing someone start out being a terrible dancer and ending up really good. Of course, that didn’t happen in my case. I stayed equally terrible the whole way through!
PGN: I watched that season, you improved! You were also on another competition show, “Jeopardy,” where you were the front runner until you lost to Regis Philbin in Final Jeopardy by $1. My question is … How hard is it to use that stupid buzzer?
CK: [Laughs] It’s very sensitive and weird. We got to do a practice round and I killed it but when the actual show started to happen, I don’t know if I was nervous or what but I could not get my buzzer to work properly. It’s very unnerving; you would think a show that sophisticated and established could get a better buzzer!
PGN: Tell me about touring with Cyndi Lauper.
CK: It was wonderful. I was the host and we went to about 25 U.S. cities and Canada to get people inspired to vote. We had several different guests, from Sarah McLachlan to Joan Jett, and I’d entertain the crowd while they were setting up. It was pretty surreal being on stage with people I’d idolized while growing up, I remember riding on the school bus and all the cool kids would sit in the back playing Joan Jett on a boombox and here I was years later standing on the stage with her. It was an amazing experience. I’d worked with Cyndi before on the True Colors Fund, which works to eliminate homelessness in the LGBT youth community.
PGN: So tell me about the hat competition at Devon.
CK: It’s a great way to get people involved and have them be part of the show. Of course, Devon is the perfect environment for that kind of competition.
PGN: Your three favorite hats?
CK: There was one made with lemons, with lemon sticks in them, which is an iconic treat at Devon. Any time people have horses on the hat it’s always fun and I recall some made out of hair, which is crazy but any time you have a little novelty and creativity I enjoy it.
PGN: Are you competing this year or just judging ladies’ hats?
CK: I think I’m just judging, but one never knows …
PGN: What was your biggest mishap in the ring?
CK: Ironically, I oftentimes have wardrobe malfunctions. I’m the last person who should be having those but I remember one time at Devon it was raining and I thought I’d be smart and use electrical tape to tape down the front part of my hat so it wouldn’t blow off. It ended up blowing forward and didn’t come off but it covered the entire front of my face so I couldn’t see where I was going as I was cantering through the mud on a high-powered horse. I couldn’t take my hands off the reins to lift the hat so I just had to hope that my horse knew what he was doing. I actually won but not because of my ride.
PGN: That’s hysterical. OK, random question: Do you remember your first kiss?
CK: No, but there were probably a lot of wine coolers involved. I’d tell you her name but she might read this.
PGN: Favorite movie line?
CK: That’s tough, there are so many. My favorite movie is “Legally Blonde,” but I’ll be cliché and pick something from “Mommy Dearest”: “This ain’t my first time at the rodeo.”
For more information about the Devon Horse Show, visit http://www.devonhorseshow.net.
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