Born in Ireland as Daniel Patrick Carroll in 1927, La Rue had an unusual background for a drag queen. He moved to England at the age of six, first performing in drag as Juliet in a school Shakespeare play because 'there weren't enough girls.' He found he enjoyed the part, but any thoughts of being a drag performer were put on hold when he joined the Royal Navy. Eventually, the drag artist won out, and he went into theatre.
La Rue never embraced the term 'drag queen,' preferring to be thought of as a 'comic in a frock.' Much of La Re's work was impersonation, making a fortune impersonating Elizabeth Taylor, Judy Garland and Zsa Zsa Gabor in the 1950s and 60s, eventually opening a nightclub in London. When he replaced Avis Bunnage in 'Oh, What A Lovely War!' in the 1980s, he became the only man to take a woman's role in the history of the West End.
Chefs made their way into celebrity land a while ago. But how many celebrities that weren’t trained as professional cooks are actually whizzes in the kitchen? Here are several that come to mind.
Actress Julia Roberts is confident about her cooking skills. “I’m quite a good cook,” she told E! News. “I’m like a closet home ec teacher…I can really cook anything.” Roberts has said she often cooks fish for herself and her kids. And speaking of her three children, “They think that I’m a good cook,” Roberts told People. “They actually told me that I should open a restaurant.” She also relishes cooking for the holidays, particularly shredded Brussel sprouts. Roberts hasn’t published a cookbook, but we did find recipes attributed to her for peach crisp and banana hemp muffins. Or you can make the same summer salad the actress supposedly eats.
Chrissy Teigen started off as a supermodel. Then her love of cooking filtered into her professional life too. At this point, she’s created recipes for a limited Blue Apron release and also just launched her own home and cooking line at Target named “Cravings,” after the two cookbooks she’s released. Teigen describes cooking as “a time of peace” for herself. So maybe peace out to her tuna melt sandwich or the fried chicken wings that are a favorite of her husband, John Legend.
Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta, comes from a cooking Italian family. Her father started his own restaurant in New York and also published a cookbook. And apparently, Lady Gaga has inherited the family’s cooking genes. Her Instagram account occasionally features photos of her culinary activities. Sure, sometimes it’s topless cooking. But other times it’s more poignant like in the post she shared about her bringing food to the family of her dear friend who passed away. Want to try a Gaga/Germanotta family favorite? Check out her recipe for whole wheat pasta with a sweet fennel sauce.