EntertainmentDarcel, the world's longest-lived drag queen, dies at 92

Darcel, the world’s longest-lived drag queen, dies at 92

Portland, Ore. (AP) — Walter Cole, known for decades as the iconic drag queen who played Torcelle XV and as a fearless advocate for Portland’s LGBTQ+ community, died of natural causes in Portland, Oregon. He is 92 years old.

Dorcell, died Thursday. He was crowned the world’s oldest working drag performer. He entered the Guinness Book of World Records in 2016 and wowed the audience to the very end. As a performer, Dorsell was known for hosting the longest-running drag show on the West Coast of the United States. Offstage, Cole, an Army veteran, championed LGBTQ+ rights and charity work in Portland.

Darcelle XV Showplace, a downtown Portland nightclub where Darcelle opened 50 years ago, made a statement. Facebook Expressing pain, requesting privacy and patience.

The club, which became a Portland cultural institution in the 1970s, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2020, making it the first site in Oregon to be specifically nominated for its significance in history. LGBTQ+. During the 1970s and early 1980s, it was considered prohibited and protesters picketed outside, The Oregonian/Oregon Live reported.

She provided a lifeline to many in the city’s LGBTQ community, including Cole, she told the newspaper in a 2010 interview. Cole prefers female pronouns while performing, but told The Oregonian that she prefers male pronouns offstage.

“If I hadn’t accepted who I am, I would be dead by now,” she told the magazine. «I would rather sit on a sofa to retire from management. Not for me”.

Todd Adams, acting executive director of Basic Rights Oregon, said of Dorcell, “She touched so many lives not only through her programs, but also through her fearless advocacy and philanthropic work. She is nothing short of an icon ».

Author Susan Stanley described the club as a place of “excellence and affection”, where performers were “dressed in sequins, satin and shimmering feather foam”, posting the first profile of Tarcelle XV. Willamette Week in 1975.

Cole, who is gay, refers to his personality in the third person using feminine pronouns when talking about Tarcell. “I’m an artist with a capital E,” Cole told Stanley. “Tarcelle is a character, like a play, and I work very hard on her.”

Stanley briefly worked at the club and became close friends with Cole. He described her as not only a talented artist who sewed many of the club’s costumes, but also a caring person who was deeply committed to the LGBTQ+ community and fighting the social stigmas of the time.

“(Darcell) was a very, very understanding person. He encouraged other guys to take action and come out of their shells,” Stanley told the AP in a telephone interview.

After decades of championing LGBTQ+ activists organizing for civil rights and liberties, Stanley said it saddens him to see how polarized traction has become in the current political climate.

“It really represents a huge misunderstanding,” he said. “Politicians want to draw on decades of attitudes… that’s baffling and horrible to me.”

Cole was born in 1930 and grew up in the Linton neighborhood of Portland. He served in the US Army and was discharged in the late 1950s. According to the club’s website, he says that he used the money he got from the army to start his first business.

After playing at a coffee shop and a jazz club, Cole bought what would become the Dorsell XV Showcase in 1967.

Two years later, he created an “alter ego” named Torcelle and came out as gay, according to a profile on the club’s website.

He left his wife and started an affair with his art director. During the 1970s, Showplace became a popular venue for cabaret and drag performances.

In 1999, after San Francisco’s Finochio’s Club drag venue closed, Dorcell became the oldest drag performer on the West Coast.

On Friday, fans, including the mayor of Portland, took to social media to mourn Cole’s death. Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden said in a social media post that Dorsell “recorded an unforgettable chapter in Portland history” with “pioneering courage.”

Torcelle XV Showplace said details of a public memorial would be announced and all performances would go ahead as planned, as per Torcelle’s wishes.

“Please join us in celebrating his legacy and memory and thank you in advance for your continued support,” the club’s statement read.

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Claire Rush is a staff member of the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report America is a non-profit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on hidden issues. You can follow Rush on Twitter @ClaireArush.

Claire Rush, Associated Press

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