Thank you to all of the writers, academics, scholars, & historians who provided us with these great works for all of us to learn and enjoy !

If you have any books to recommend that we can add to our bookstore, please let us know.
Write us at info@dragkinghistory.com

After the Ball

Directed by Compton Bennett
Produced by Peter Rogers and Gerald Thomas
Distributed by British Lion Films Ltd

After the Ball is a British film from 1957 that portrays the life of United Kingdom’s most famous and beloved male impersonator, Vesta Tilley who thrived in the late Victorian era. Pat Kirkwood stars as Tilley, and does a terrific job of bringing her popular songs to life on screen. She provides a birdseye view into the life and times of Vesta on stage in all her glory.

It can be rented or purchased through Amazon:

With a fistful of fetish in every frame, Girl King is a sexy, swashbuckling, gender-bending adventure on the high seas. When a naïve baby Butch is taken prisoner by the pirate Captain Candy, a hunt begins to find the Queen’s stolen “treasure.” In a world where “men were men, and girls were girls,” the loss of the Queen’s treasure has turned things upside down. Now, tops are bottomed, pirate captains are seduced by tranny sailors and cross-dressing femmes pack a wallop. With the help of the mysterious Easy, can Butch and Captain Candy find the Queen’s lost treasure and restore the line between butch and femme, or will the treasure, and the “natural” order, be lost forever?

Decidedly tongue-in-cheek, this clever tale uses a stylish pastiche of ‘pirated’ images and themes to lead us into the uncharted oceans of dyke desire and queer identity.

 

Anne+: The Film

Directed by Valerie Bisscheroux
Written by Maud Weimeijer

Produced by Millstreet Films
Distributed by Netflix, 2021

Anne+: The Film is a new Dutch- language romantic movie. A twenty-something lesbian university graduate in Amsterdam prepares to leave for Montreal, meanwhile navigating her social life and writing career. It’s all going according to plan (sort of) until Anne meets non-binary drag king Lou who offers her a much-needed different perspective on love, life and sexuality.

By Hook or By Crook

Directed by Harry Dodge, Silas Howard
Produced by Steakhaus Productions, Harry Dodge, Silas Howard
Written by Harry Dodge, Silas Howard, Stanya Kahn
Distributed by Artistic License, 2002

By Hook or by Crook, a 2001 queer butch/trans buddy film, chronicles the tale of two unlikely friends who commit petty crimes as they search for a path to understanding themselves and the outside world. Silas Howard plays Shy (a transgender man), who leaves his small town after the death of his father, and heads to the big city to live a life of crime. Along the way, he encounters Valentine, a quirky adoptee, in search of his birth mother. An immediate kinship is sparked between these men and they become partners in crime. Suffering money troubles, emotional problems, and physical confrontations, the duo face their issues head on and learn to trust each other and support each other in pursuit of their goals. Co-star’s performance artiste’ Stanya Kahn and San Francisco dyke poet Carina Gia.

The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and received several awards, including Best Feature, Audience Award at Outfest Los Angeles Lesbian & Gay Film Festival; Best Screenplay, Grand Jury Prize at Outfest Los Angeles Lesbian & Gay Film Festival; Best Feature, Jury Prize at Seattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival; Best New Director, Jury Prize at Seattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival; Best Feature, Audience Award at Mardi Gras Festival, Australia; Best Feature, Audience Award at South by Southwest Film Festival; Best Feature, Jury Award at Philadelphia Lesbian & Gay Film Festival.

Girl King

Directed by Ileana Pietrobruno
Produced by Ileana Pietrobruno
Distributed by Ariztical Entertainment

Girl King is a 2002 Canadian feature-length, drag king pirate movie; directed, produced, written and edited by Ileana Pietrobruno, with cinematography by John Houtman.[1][2] It stars Chrystal Donbrath-Zinga, Michael-Ann Connor, Raven Courtney, Victoria Deschanel, Joyce Pate and Jonathan Sutton. The music is by Amon Tobin.

With a fistful of fetish in every frame, Girl King is a sexy, swashbuckling, gender-bending adventure on the high seas. When a naïve baby Butch is taken prisoner by the pirate Captain Candy, a hunt begins to find the Queen’s stolen “treasure.” In a world where “men were men, and girls were girls,” the loss of the Queen’s treasure has turned things upside down. Now, tops are bottomed, pirate captains are seduced by tranny sailors and cross-dressing femmes pack a wallop. With the help of the mysterious Easy, can Butch and Captain Candy find the Queen’s lost treasure and restore the line between butch and femme, or will the treasure, and the “natural” order, be lost forever?

Decidedly tongue-in-cheek, this clever tale uses a stylish pastiche of ‘pirated’ images and themes to lead us into the uncharted oceans of dyke desire and queer identity.

 

History Lessons

Directed by Barbara Hammer
Produced by Barbara Hammer Productions
Edited by Barbara Hammer

Distributed by Barbara Hammer, 2000

In this wonderfully irreverent yet empowering film, Barbara Hammer traces lesbian history by presenting an extraordinary array of archival footage – and then playfully manipulates it to make it seem as though lesbians were everywhere. From popular films to newsreels, sex ed pics, stag reels, medical and educational films, old nudies and more, History Lessons reclaims and rewrites lesbian history.

You will find some of New York City’s well-known Drag Kings including Dred, Mo B. Dick, Antonio Caputo, Mistah.

DVD available for sale for private use. Price: $30

NATE – A One Man Show

Directed by Phil Burgers
Executive Producer: Amy Poehler
Produced by Comedy Dynamics: A Nacelle Company, 2020
Distributed by Netflix

Tough talk takes an unexpected turn as Nate, played by comedian Natalie Palamides, explores humor, heartbreak, sexuality and consent with a live audience.

 

Our Flag Means Death

Produced by HBO Max, Cere Prods, Piki Films
Distributed by HBO Max, 2022

HBO‘s hit pirate comedy Our Flag Means Death was created by David Jenkins. It is based on the true story of “The Gentleman Pirate”, aka Stede Bonnet who has a midlife crisis and decides to blow up his cushy life to become a pirate. His adventures on the high seas are more comical than treacherous, especially when he accidentally becomes besties with Blackbeard. With a crew of misfits, Bonnet and his crew bring high stakes laughter, unexpected romance, and inclusion.

Non-binary Puerto Rican actor Vico Ortiz, plays a gender nonconforming swashbuckler Jim / Bonifacia who isn’t afraid to stand their ground. They also are a Los Angeles based Drag King by the name of Vico Suave.

Pecker by John Waters

Directed by John Waters
Produced by Polar Entertainment
Distributed by Fine Line Features, 1998

Pecker is a 1998 American comedy film written and directed by John Waters. Like all of Waters’ films, it was filmed and set in Baltimore; this film was set in the Hampden neighborhood. A talented young photographer, who enjoys snapping photos of his satirical, perverted Baltimore neighborhood and his wacky family, gets dragged into a world of pretentious artists from New York City and finds newfound fame. Drag King Mo B. Dick is a guest star playing Zorro the lesbian stripper with a drag king twist.

Tipping the Velvet

(TV Series on BBC)

Directed by Geoffrey Sax
Produced by Sally Head Productions, 2002
Distributed by BritBox

Dramatized from Sarah Waters’ acclaimed debut novel, “Tipping the Velvet” tells the story of Nancy Astley (Rachael Stirling), a young girl who works as cook and waitress in her Father’s seaside restaurant – that is until she witnesses the extraordinary performance of a new-to-town male impersonator – Kitty Butler (Keeley Hawes) – and begins to undergo a complete life transformation. Suddenly whipped up – and quickly flung down – by her love affair with Kitty, she experiences both euphoria and deep disillusion as she embarks on a seven-year journey of self-discovery – finally realizing that a life of sensation just isn’t enough.

 

Virgin Machine

Directed by Monika Treut
Produced by Monika Treut, Hyena Films NDR, 1988
Distributed by First Run Features

Dorothee Müller is a young journalist from Hamburg. She is eager for love, but frustrated by her relationships with men such as Heinz and Bruno, and sets out to unlock the secret to romantic love professionally, as a journalist, interviewing people from different professions. Failing to find the answers she seeks, she flies off to San Francisco. There, she meets several extraordinary women, and continues her quest to figure out love by interviewing them: Ramona, the drag king (played by Shelly Mars); Dominique, a Hungarian bohemian type; and Susie Sexpert, who owns a collection of incredible dildos. Dorothee’s exploration leads her on a journey of self-exploration and adventure, and to new discoveries about her own sexuality.