the Featherette's 9

After the ten minute ovation we went back into the dressing room. Hank had a bottle of Champagne waiting for us and popped the cork to toast his new stars. In hind sight I realize how even that night Hank started to take ownership of us. We were to become his property, but that night we were new found stars. Rodger fell into his role as protector and professional-when people came backstage they all congratulated him on turning Alton and me into performers. They congratulated Alton on looking like a natural beauty; Alton loved it and reapplied his make-up to greet his public. Sammy was acknowledged as the show stopper and I was the funny one.
FLASH FORWARD: I would be told many times to “Stop stealing the focus from the lead.”
We made so many new friends that night. People just poured backstage to hug us and tip us and buy us drinks. We had arrived and it was GREAT! Hank had asked us to walk around the club and meet and greet the customers. This was the night before the fourth of July and the place was over the legal limit, but no one complained they just had fun. I didn’t want the night to end and it didn’t.
It was almost last call when Dominick and the skid row gang were heading into the city, I wanted to go but my boy clothes were at Rodgers and by the time I got there and changed it would have been too late. Rodger wanted to see us performers in the dressing room. We all gathered and Rodger announced that he had hired a limo to take us into the city to go to the Monster nightclub in the heart of Greenwich Village. A LIMO! Rodger was the greatest! We were given another bottle of champagne from Oe and Hank and gathered Casper and a few other friends to go into the city. The limo ride was the ultimate in a perfect night. Alton and I popped our heads out of the sunroof and was warned by Rodger that our wigs would fly off. We relived our performance all the way to the Monster. Roger wanted the diver to take the long way to the Monster and when we got to the club the Feathers crowd was already there waiting for us. Rodger had planned it so that there would be a crowd waiting for us and watching as we got out of the limo. He was so smart and good at creating attention. The crowd followed us into the club. Once we entered the Monster the piano player, who was located at the front door back then, went into “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy”, Rodger, always the true performer, made us do our choreography. FINALLY we got to do the dance steps we rehearsed! The Monster ate it up and the manager gave was VIP treatment. I was riding the high until I realized that John never showed up. I asked Dominick what happened to John. He informed me that John got lucky with a hot little number. I looked in the mirror and saw a tall ugly boy dressed as a girl. That image would follow me for a long time.
We got back to Rodgers at about 3:30 am. I found out the joy of make-up remover! What a hell it was to take off make-up. The fake nails were crazy glued on and you needed pliers’ to get them off. Rodger had used clown glue to hide our eye brows and again, took forever to take them off. We left Rodgers at 5:00am. He offered us the couches but Alton wanted to go home. Rodger invited us to a 4th BBQ and his friends place and we would go see the fireworks together. We agreed to go. The friendship bond was growing tighter.
I stayed at Kenny Alton’s that night, not that we slept we just talked and laughed and I cried hat Johnny wasn’t with me that night and Alton promised me that one day Johnny would be and we fell asleep.
Till Tomorrow, Be Kind…