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All-Male College Musicals

@fluffyruffles25.bsky.social

17 followers 13 following 140 posts

Paying tribute to the oh-so-lovely but very manly drag performers in the womanless, gay college musicals of a century ago. Hundreds more images at Flickr. Questions welcome!

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All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · Jul 7

Somebody's jealous! #womanless #drag #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 11h

Blushing freshman Al Dietzel wore makeup, lipstick, mascara, eyeshadow, gloves, pearls, earrings, wig, heels, bra, corset and mom's prettiest dress to beat what the U of Wisconsin yearbook termed "eight ravishing beauties'' for the title of "Miss Haresfoot of 1950.'' #boyswillbegirls #drag

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 12h

#womanless #drag #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 12h

#womanless #drag #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 12h

Howie Jones of Pittsburgh's #womanless Cap and Gown Club, circa 1939. #drag #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 13h

#boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 13h

Clifton Britton (left) and future star Bob Cummings in #drag for Pittsburgh Cap and Gown's #womanless "To The Point'' (1928). #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 14h

In the course of Wisconsin's #womanless "Keep 'Em Laughin.' (1942), Duane Bogie's Petunia is transformed into "Diane,'' a glamorous night club singer. #drag #boyswillbegirls (3 of 3)

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 14h

A closer look at Duane Bogie in farm #drag as the lovely "Petunia'' in Haresfoot's 1941 #womanless show. #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 14h

Duane Bogie as "Petunia'' enjoys a "romantic'' moment from "Keep 'em Laughin,' " 1941 #womanless musical staged by the University of Wisconsin's Haresfoot Club. #drag #boyswillbegirls (1 of 3)

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 5d

John Fanz Staub (left) and an unidentified blonde "girl'' in another MIT 1915 yearbook image from the proudly #womanless "Winning Across'' (1915), AI colorized and enhanced for your enjoyment. #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 5d

Principal cast of the 1915 #womanless MIT Tech Show. Lovely "Leading lady'' John Fanz Staub (with the strategically placed neck ribbon) played Honoree in romantic musical set in World War I France. #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 5d

Premiere Danseuse John Paul Gardner (center), later a professional dancer, and the "ladies'' chorus of "Winning A-Cross,'' the proudly #womanless 1915 musical from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 22d

Ann, I think I forgot to send you this review of GOG that appeared in the New York Times on May 22, 1981.

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All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 23d

You're very welcome. I thought you might find this interesting!

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 24d

Here's a New York Times ad for the actual 5/22/81 opening on a Greenwich Village screen with around 150 seats.

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 24d

Here's the wacky 3/29/81 ad that ran in the New York Times touting the cancelled opening at a fancy East Side art house with 600 seats.

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · 24d

Great piece! Did you know a major Hollywood studio bungled a re-release of GOG in 1981? Here's an article from the Los Angeles Times.

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All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · Aug 28

Way back in 1921, audience members could purchase photos of #womanless show "beauties" like Art Fluegelman to paste in their bulging scrapbooks. #boyswillbegirls #drag

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · Aug 28

Art Fluegelman happily traded his track shoes for a pair of high heels to play leading lady "Claire'' in Columbia University's #womanless 1921 Varsity Show. Here "she'' serves up "her'' best "come hither'' look. #boyswillbegirls #drag

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All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · Aug 28

"Claire,'' as artfully impersonated by Arthur Fluegelman, a lithe member of Columbia University's track team, flirts up a storm in a pretty promotional photo for "You'll Never Know,'' the #womanless 1921 Varsity Show. #boyswillbegirls #drag

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · Aug 26

"No wonder 'Lucille' was able to tame 'The Purple Dragon' of the annual MIT Tech Show,'' Boston Post reported in 1921. " 'She' is Parke D. Appel, who is learning to be an electrical engineer but doesn't need any more knowledge when it comes to 'making up' as a 'perfect lady.' " #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · Aug 26

"Here is the 'girl with the purple eyes' who 'vamped' a reporter and got him to button 'her' slipper strap, and then turned out to be Malcolm D. Hill, the 'man with the prettiest orbs in Harvard,' " the Boston Post reported in 1921. #womanless #boyswillbegirls #drag

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · Aug 26

Malcolm Dill sports impressive cleavage and more as "Princess Tai Lo"' in "The Late Mr. Kidd,'' a #womanless musical staged in 1921 by Harvard's Pi Eta Club. #drag #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · Aug 23

College groups like Cornell Masque often sold sheet music for the songs in their #womanless shows back in the day. #drag #boyswillbegirls

All-Male College Musicals @fluffyruffles25.bsky.social · Aug 23

Cornell University's pretty "pony chorus'' shows off their oh-so-shapely ankles in another publicity shot for the Masque's #womanless musical "My Junior Week Girl'' 105 years ago. #drag #boyswillbegirls