Just in time for Gay Pride, a new bio on legendary performer Charles Pierce is hitting the shelves. Author Kirk Frederick’s “Write That Down! The Comedy of a Male Actress” (Havenhurst Books) puts Pierce center stage again as one of the most important figures in modern LGBTQ history. We chatted with Frederick about his relationship to the noted performer and Pierce’s enduring legacy.
NN: Thank you for taking the time out of what sounds like a world tour! So delighted to hear about your success.
KF: THAN-KEW! [using his best Charles-as-Bette Davis voice].
NN: My Lord, you were just a babe in the woods when you chanced about Mr. Pierce. What were your first impressions of him? Were you scandalized?
KF: Aw, Nick… you flatter me. Without revealing my actual age, I had just turned 26 [he said, revealing his age THEN] when I first saw Charles perform and met him backstage. Charles had just turned 43. I appreciated older men, especially extraordinarily-talented ones; loved his style, humor, attitude, looks. I was so taken aback by those qualities, that I was anything but “scandalized.” More like mesmerized.
NN: You were quite the lollipop (still are!) back in the day. Beyond your adorableness, what do you think Mr. Pierce saw in you to take you into his fabulous fold?
KF: Aw, Nick, stop with the flattery. I’m married! [But I’m not dead, dumb, or blind (or blond), so I still appreciate it.] Looking back, I think Charles and I were attracted to each other from the first night we met in 1969. There was always a flirtatious spark between us; it carried through our 20+ years together, but we maintained a professional relationship through all those years, and nothing ever “happened” between us. He also appreciated my acting talent, and admired my organizational and production skills for his shows. We were a perfect match, in so many ways.
NN: This book is not your average saucy tell-all. Isn’t there anything to tell? It WAS San Francisco’s Golden Age, after all. Spill. Spill. Or, is that for Volume 2?
KF: There might be a Volume 2… there are still many more of his comedy lines and stories that friends and fans have since reminded me. I understand that everyone seems to want/enjoy the “sleaze” factor, which, as I say in the book, I would have to make up. I never even saw Charles naked, and we didn’t hang out together at the baths or even in bars. I was always naked in “Geese.” He liked what he saw, and told me so. In fact there’s this Polaroid picture of us backstage after one of his cabaret numbers where I was buck naked. Charles liked the picture so much, he framed it and kept it for years.
NN: How do you think spinning in Mr. Pierce’s sphere impacted your life? Personally. Professionally.
KF: Charles impacted me more than any other professional with whom I ever worked. Not only did I admire and enjoy his comedy (and spend many hours every week laughing with/at him), I adored him as a human being. I learned from his enviable ability to remain professional at all times, to always think of the audience first, to respect them and appreciate them. I also learned kindness, generosity, humor, and his “tricks” of comedy. More often than not during our years together, I was involved with someone else, but during the times I was “single,” I also enjoyed the attention that I got, not only from Charles, but often from the hordes of fans and admirers who found us attractive off stage…. I made many life-long friends working with Charles.
NN: My generation is tickled to read about Charles Pierce up close, but what do you think the kids can learn from your book? Is there a moral to the story?
KF: I hope the kids appreciate the place in gay entertainment history that Charles created, contributed to, influenced, and affected. I hope they appreciate his funny material. I hope they appreciate the laughter. The book’s “moral” is simple (which I quote in the book): “He who laughs, lasts.” Laughter became the best medicine Charles could dispense in those “dark” 1980s. It was appropriate for me to write it down and share it with current and future generations. Keep smiling, and even better: keep laughing!
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