Elizabeth Coffey
Elizabeth Coffey is an American actress. She had notable roles in two of the early films of John Waters.[1] Coffey is a transgender woman.
Elizabeth Coffey | |
|---|---|
 Coffey at the Female Trouble premiere | |
| Occupation | Film actress |
| Known for | Dreamlanders |
Biography
She is considered one of the Dreamlanders, Waters' ensemble of regular cast and crew members.
At the time of her first film appearance in Waters' Pink Flamingos (1972), Coffey was a pre-operative transgender woman who had already undergone hormone therapy to develop breasts and female features. She played the part of a beautiful woman who turns the tables on a perverted flasher/voyeur by exposing and wagging her penis at him, sending him fleeing in shock.[2]
Coffey had gender reassignment surgery completed a week after her scene was filmed, and appears as a female character in Waters' next film, Female Trouble (1974). In that film she played Earnestine, the sorrowful death row cellmate of Dawn Davenport (Divine). She later appeared in the music video for Divine's cover of The Four Seasons' "Walk Like a Man."
Coffey is currently married, with one adopted child. She remains in contact with Waters, and has worked with several AIDS-related charities.
Filmography
- Pink Flamingos (1972) as Chick with a Dick
- Female Trouble (1974) as Earnestine
- Walk Like A Man (1985) as Woman at the Bar
References
- "Elizabeth Coffey". IMDb. Retrieved 2008-08-27.
- Shock Value, John Waters, p. 129
