FOO FOO

Last week, dear blog friend Christina mentioned in a post she had been years ago to a drag show. She recalled it was at Foo Foo's Palace. She has no idea how lucky she was, and it got me to thinking back on the fabulous, Foo Foo Lamarr. First of all, that's a great drag name. I sometimes think those old, fun, campy drag names are the best. The old formula of the name of your first pet and the name of your first street your lived would be your drag name. In that case I'd been Poochie Kensington. But I digress. So this post was inspired by Christina.

It's been almost 17 years ago that one of the North of England’s most popular female impersonator, Frank Pearson appeared in the guise of the brassy Foo Foo Lamarr in Manchester nightclubs and cabaret venues passed away . Appearing on stage in huge blonde bouffant wigs and expensive sequined gowns, he was known for his very caustic wit and repartee with tough northern audiences, and was riding high as one of Manchester's most flamboyant life and soul of the parties there.

Off stage he was a shrewd businessman, and by most show business standards he was astonishingly successful. In a career that spanned three decades he amassed a personal fortune of more than $5 million, but his own wealth was eclipsed by the amount he raised for charities. He opened his own Manchester nightclub, Foo Foo’s, which became a favorite for hen and stag parties, and had a financial interest in a string of clubs, bars and restaurants in the city. Pearson was born in Ancoats, the son of a rag-and-bone merchant, and left school at 15 with a fierce ambition to go into showbusiness. He took a job at a paper-recycling plant but in the evenings began appearing in drag in pubs under the name of Foo Foo Lamarr, Heddy Lamarr being his favorite screen actress, and can you blame him?. When his father first saw his son’s act, he was so incensed he threw a bar stool at him across a crowded pub. Someone told his dad that he was singing in the Ancoats Arms, but what they did not tell him was that he was stretched across the piano in a frock!

In the 1960s there had been a boom in drag acts. Foo Foo became the Danny la Rue of the North... Danny la Rue had paved the way for many female impersonators with his lavish family stage shows, and comedians such as Larry Grayson had made camp humour respectable on television. Pearson’s own rise to fame was quick. A gifted performer, he developed an act that was risqué but perfectly timed. He didn't  see himself as a drag queen, but rather a comic in a frock. He was particularly in demand for hen parties and nightclubs, and soon attracted a large following. Coach parties of women would often travel from all over the country to see him perform. In 1971 he bought his first club, the Picador in Shudehill, followed by Celebrity, which was renamed, Foo Foo’s Palace, in Dale Street, Manchester. Foo Foo’s quickly established itself as a premier nightspot. A favourite with Manchester United players, it was also frequented by many showbusiness personalities.

Off stage he became almost as big a celebrity as he was in drag, a familiar sight in his native city dressed in shiny suits and dripping in gaudy jewelry. He owned a succession of Rolls-Royces, he could be seen driving, with the registration plate FOO 1, and he delighted in giving lifts to local people in the neighborhood. One described him as being as essential a part of Manchester as the town clock.

He was devoted to his mother, Leah, and took her shopping every day. The pair would often drive to a local fish and chip shop in his Rolls-Royce before returning to the bungalow that he had bought her in Moston. During the 1990s, Canal Street in Manchester — the city center area in which the successful television drama series Queer as Folk was set — had become popular with the gay community. At the same time Pearson bought a number of clubs and pubs in the area, including Napoleon’s and Cruz 101. He lived lavishly but spent most of his spare time raising money for local charities,  and his appearances at charity auctions guaranteed large donations from the public.A regular on TV chat shows, Pearson also recorded an LP, My Life at the Palace, and a single, Around the Old Camp Fire. He is survived by his partner of 29 years, Billy Hughes.

Foo Foo Lamarr was born in 1938. He died of cancer on November 7, 2003, aged 65.