Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip: Lesley Gore

Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip: 

Lesley Gore

In my own personal big gay church, there is a wing devoted to the sainted known as The Working Girls. Typically, these women have had long, varied careers; hosting shows, acting in movies and on television, doing variety shows, Vegas and working for a cause. They are legends because they have earned it.

One such gifted performer?

Lesley Gore.

Gore did it all... singer, songwriter, actor, activist. 

She learned the business under the wing of Quincy Jones, while spinning out heartbreak hit after heartbreak hit.

It's My Party, You Don't Own Me, Judy's Turn To Cry... to name but a few. 

A variety show regular, her face was hardly a stranger to people's homes when she played Pussycat to Julie Newmar's Catwoman on the old Batman And Robin television series.

All the while... she was learning more about herself.

You see, Lesley Gore never 'came out'... she evolved, refined and was just 'out.' 

What did she have to hide?

With her younger brother, Michael Gore, she co-wrote one of the most beloved songs in the 1980 film Fame, Out Here On My Own.

She toured, did Vegas and eventually was chosen as one of the hosts of  the PBS series In The Life, which presented snapshots of what it means to be gay and the plethora of lifestyles lived by members of the LGBTQ+ community.

The gospel according to her?

Well, here are three from the hip, dropping from her lips.

The topic? Becoming A Gay Ambassador

"I have nothing but the best memories of growing up in New Jersey. Of course, I grew up in a nice town, a suburb. But Tenafly was right next to Englewood, which had a tremendous amount of racial tension in the '60s. So I was aware of the real world."

"I have to say that when I first started singing, I didn't think it was a very noble profession. I worked for people like Robert Kennedy and I thought: 'Wow, that's what it's about. That's how you change the world.' And then I watched that disintegrate in front of my eyes, and it was very discouraging."

"You know, the interesting thing about having traveled around the country as much as I have, and I think it's sort of inadvertently what made me come out or at least begin doing things within the community and thinking more about that, was that I get to travel quite a bit."

"I meet a lot of young people in the Midwest, and I saw what a difference a show like In the Life can make to their lives in some of these small towns where, you know, there are probably two gay people in the whole damn town."

"I decided to host a couple of the In The Life programs. And I did that really as a result of meeting a lot of young gay people in the Midwest who really had nothing to relate to. At least I felt this program is presenting them with some options."

It's My Party - Lesley Gore

You Don't Own Me - Lesley Gore

Cry Me A River/Hey Jude - Lesley Gore

And one last parting shot...

"I think the record industry, by and large what's left of it, is still totally homophobic. I think it's much less so in the film industry now, but the record industry, it's always been a man's world."

"I think that in many ways, gays are behind women and behind blacks, as far as rights go. But I always say, if you know one of us, it's hard to hate us. "