Aleshia Brevard - The Woman I Was Born To Be

2010, Aleshia Brevard, Bambi, Charlotte MacLeod, English, USA,

Full title: "The Woman I Was Born To Be" by Aleshia Brevard. This is her second biography. In 2001, she published her first biographical book - "The Woman I Was Not Born To Be" (2001).

"For nearly 50 years, Aleshia Brevard hid the fact that she was one of America's first transsexuals from her friends, stepchildren, fellow actors and actresses, film producers, students, university administrators and even from her four husbands.

The Woman I Was Born To Be is a sequel to Ms. Brevard's earlier book, The Woman I Was NOT Born To Be. This book covers the second half of her exciting life, describing the many challenges she encountered and triumphs she achieved after having fulfilled her boyhood dream of becoming her authentic self and finding acceptance as the woman whom from boyhood she'd known herself to be."

I still cannot believe that Alessia is not around anymore. She was my best friend and my second mother. In 2013, we did a very long interview about how she coped with all challenges related to being transgender, and this is what she told me: "When I transitioned the term “transgender” had yet to be invented. At that time, in fact, “transsexuality” was generally thought of as a ‘condition’, an awkward period through which one must pass, like some bothersome adolescence. Our goal was to move forward, as seamlessly as possible, easing into mainstream society to live as our authentic selves. We wished to live among, work alongside, and compete on an equal footing with other women, including those who had been born female.

Through Dr. Benjamin I met and became friends with Charlotte MacLeod, who had followed Christine Jorgensen’s transforming surgery in Denmark. Charlotte and another close friend from Finocchio’s, Kathy, whose surgery followed mine by a year and who was another patient of Dr. Benjamin, offered friendship and support. We shared our dreams and to them, I owe a great deal. At that time I was also aware of Bambi, in France. Bambi’s beauty and accomplishments offered me hope for the future. At that time, of course, transsexuals were few and far between. I’m fond of saying that few houses had yet to be built in the gender community."

Aleshia Brevard (December 9, 1937 – July 1, 2017) was an American author and actress of stage, screen, and television. She worked as an entertainer, actress, model, Playboy bunny, professor of theater, and author. She also underwent one of the early sex reassignment surgery procedures performed in the United States. Brevard was born in Erwin, Tennessee and grew up in a religious family in a rural part of central Tennessee. She always felt different from other children, like a girl inside, and prayed nightly to wake up a girl. After a romantic disappointment in high school, she left right after graduation for the West Coast. In San Francisco, Brevard found a job as a female impersonator at Finocchio's Club under the stage name Lee Shaw in the early 1960s, doing Marilyn Monroe impressions.

She began her transition at 21 under the care of famed gender specialist Harry Benjamin in the late 1950s. At Benjamin's recommendation, Brevard underwent the surgical reassignment procedure in Los Angeles's Westlake Clinic under the care of surgeon Elmer Belt. Brevard later worked as a stripper in Reno and as a Playboy bunny. After a year's recovery post-surgery, she enrolled as a student at Middle Tennessee State University for her undergraduate education. During this period, she became more comfortable with her womanhood, got married, and took classes. This was at a time when she was a working actress, touring the U.S. doing theater, and working in film or television. She gained membership in Hollywood unions, and ultimately got her master's degree in Theater from Middle Tennessee State.

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and The Heroines of My Life

Photo via The Heroines of My Life