Elizabeth Coffey is one of John Waters’ original “Dreamlanders”— the cast and crew who regularly worked with the director.
Coffey, who lives in Philadelphia, will take part in a Q&A following the 30th-anniversary screening of Waters’ “Hairspray” at the Proscenium Theater Sept. 5.
Coffey was featured in Waters’ earlier films, including “Pink Flamingo” (1972) and “Female Trouble” (1974). Her ironically shocking cameo in “Pink Flamingos” where she — before having gender-reassignment surgery — flashed a perverted park flasher/voyeur her penis causing the flasher to run away as she laughs.
“The shock value was impactful,” she said. “Rather than being the joke, I got to make the joke. I got to win. I’ve always felt really good about that. It was all because of [Waters].”
Waters told PGN that Coffey was “a brave actress who was a huge part of making ‘Pink Flamingos’ a hit in Baltimore when it first premiered.”
Coffey said the director, with whom she still remains close, helped to open the door for queer and transgender actors and performers. After “Pink Flamingos,” she starred in Waters’ “Female Trouble” (1974) but gave up acting after she was turned down for a role in Sidney Lumet’s “Dog Day Afternoon” (1975) because she “was too female for the role.”
“I never auditioned for anything again. I worked with [Waters] again, but I never auditioned again because I knew there was no place for me. I would’ve been banging down doors that weren’t going to open,” she said.
Coffey marveled at how times have improved for trans actors.
“I’m extraordinarily proud that this is happening. People of the trans experience are finally getting a voice in front of the camera and behind the camera, and they’re not backing off in Hollywood.”