Suits Me: The Double Life of Billy Tipton"Suits Me is the biography of a now notorious jazz musician named Billy Tipton, who grew up as Dorothy Tipton in Oklahoma City and Kansas City but lived as a man from the time she was nineteen until she died at age seventy-four. Billy Tipton's death in Spokane, Washington, made news all over the world, not because he was celebrated as a musician but because the scale of his deception - he had been "married" to five women and had reared several adopted children - and the scarcity of ready explanations endowed the skimpy available facts with the aura of myth." "But locked away in Billy's office closet lay files of clippings and photographs documenting the transformation of Billy from she to he, as well as a legacy of annotated comic routines, musical arrangements, and program notes. These revealed to Diane Wood Middlebrook how Billy scattered clues and riddles night after night about the drag she wore. These hints were so bold that they helped conceal Billy's secrets." "With brio and pathos, Suits Me tells the life story of this brilliant deceiver, who lived and loved in two skins, one of each sex."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved |
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Page 54
... player . ' Course I was all excited about getting to play on the radio . And the other things too , just playing with a band ! So he drove me over to the house it was only a block away and I played a song for them on the piano . He said ...
... player . ' Course I was all excited about getting to play on the radio . And the other things too , just playing with a band ! So he drove me over to the house it was only a block away and I played a song for them on the piano . He said ...
Page 65
... playing dance music at a fancy nightclub . “ No- body was doing well in Oklahoma in those years , " she said , " but I had steady work , and was working with the better musicians in town . ” And Billy ? " She was working around town ...
... playing dance music at a fancy nightclub . “ No- body was doing well in Oklahoma in those years , " she said , " but I had steady work , and was working with the better musicians in town . ” And Billy ? " She was working around town ...
Page 151
... playing things like " Body and Soul , " " Perdido , " jazz tunes that Count Basie and Duke Ellington and the old Jimmie Lunceford band used to do . That was the real meat and potatoes to us . Then , when we'd finished playing at a club ...
... playing things like " Body and Soul , " " Perdido , " jazz tunes that Count Basie and Duke Ellington and the old Jimmie Lunceford band used to do . That was the real meat and potatoes to us . Then , when we'd finished playing at a club ...
Contents
But Who Was She? 18891928 | 13 |
Kansas City 19291932 | 33 |
19331940 | 47 |
Copyright | |
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asked band became began Bess Betty Bill Billy Tipton Billy's body booked boys brother called Carrie claimed clothes Club couple dance Dave death didn't Dorothy Dorothy's dressed Earl father female friends gave George girl hand interview with DM jazz Joplin June Kansas City keep kids kind Kitty knew later letters lived look male married Maryann Mayer mother moved musicians needed never night nightclub Norma Oklahoma City once performed person piano player playing radio recalled records Reggie Reggie's remembered road role seemed sister Sobol social Spokane started stayed story Swing talk tell things thought told took town trio trying turned wanted wearing week wife woman women wrote young