Esther Newton Made Me Gay - with producer Shanti Avirgan in attendance

Drawn to the drag scene as a student in the 1950s and identifying as both butch lesbian and between genders, Esther Newton has spent six decades writing about and forging queer communities; and her 1972 book ‘Mother Camp: Female Impersonators in America’ is noted as the first rigorous academic/anthropological study of queer community in modern history. ESTHER NEWTON MADE ME GAY is a rare look at queer history and gender studies through a living lesbian icon, encompassing amazing archival footage peppered with Esther’s other passion….dog training poodles!