Paul Wegman grew up in Rochester, NY, and initially worked in a carnival.
He first moved to Orlando, Florida in 1965. In 1966 he worked for a while as a female stripper without being outed, and was also booked for prostitution in a gay bar by police officers who thought that he was a woman.
He became well-known in Orlando as an actor. He was known for his versatility of roles in straight theater, and who had a second stage career as Miss P.
He worked with Logan Carter in the early ‘70s, and had developed the Miss P persona by the mid-1970s when he moved his act to the Parliament House, a theater in Orlando. In addition to his own act, he emceed the other drag queens, staged an all-male version of A Chorus Line, and presented various gay plays.
Paul died from complications from Aids.
- James T. Sears. Rebels, Rubyfruit, and Rhinestones: Queering Space in the Stonewall South. Rutgers University Press 421 pp 2001: 74-6, 82-5, 128-9, 155-6, 160-1.
- Jason Piekarski and Michael Wanzie (dir). Paul Wegman: A Tribute. US 40 mins 2006.
- "Paul Wegman 'Miss P'. Gay Orlando History. http://gayorlandohistory.com/gallery/v/Entertainment/Drag/MissP/img274.jpg.html
I always thought that Paul should have been a documentary subject. (He once said that he would someday write an autiography entitled "And There's A Bed In The Kitchen".) His talent, generous heart and the hardships he endured made him a real inspiration. He anchored his outrageous style with a warmth that couldn't help but show through. He is immensely missed.
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