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Personal Info
Known For
Acting
Birthday
October 19, 1945
Died
March 7, 1988
Place of Birth
Towson, Maryland, USA
Also Known As
- Harris Glenn Milstead
Divine
1.3 Popularity
Biography
Divine (19 October 1945 – 7 March 1988), né Harris Glenn Milstead, was an American actor, singer and drag queen. Described by People magazine as the "Drag Queen of the Century", Divine often performed female roles in both cinema and theater and also appeared in women's clothing in musical performances. Even so, he considered himself to be a character actor and performed male roles in a number of his later films. He was often associated with independent filmmaker John Waters and starred in ten of Waters's films, usually in a leading role. Concurrent with his acting career, he also had a successful career as a disco singer during the 1980s, at one point being described as "the most successful and in-demand disco performer in the world." Born in Baltimore, Maryland, into a conservative, wealthy middle class family, he became involved with John Waters and his acting troupe, the Dreamlanders, in the mid-1960s and starred in a number of Waters's early films such as Mondo Trasho, Multiple Maniacs, Pink Flamingos and Female Trouble. These films have since become cult classics. In the 1970s, Milstead made the transition to theater and appeared in a number of productions, including Women Behind Bars and The Neon Woman, while continuing to star in such films as Polyester, Lust in the Dust and Hairspray. The New York Times said of Milstead's '80s films: "Those who could get past the unremitting weirdness of Divine's performance discovered that the actor/actress had genuine talent, including a natural sense of comic timing and an uncanny gift for slapstick." He was also described as "one of the few truly radical and essential artists of the century… was an audacious symbol of man's quest for liberty and freedom." Since his death, Divine has remained a cult figure, particularly with those in the LGBT community.
Known For
0.0
Self
Too Disgusting To Be Confused
2025
7.8
Edna Turnblad (archive footage)
Disclosure
2020
0.0
BEAT. Contour. Snatched. How Drag Queens Shaped the Biggest Makeup Trends
2018
6.4
Self (archive footage)
Studio 54
2018
6.8
Dawn Davenport / Earl Peterson (archive footage)
Howard
2018
10.0
Self (archive footage)
Discolocos
2016
0.0
Self
Night Flight: Born Again
2016
7.3
Self (archive footage)
Tab Hunter Confidential
2015
7.3
Self (archive footage)
I Am Divine
2014
7.7
Self (archive footage)
Cachitos de hierro y cromo
2013
Credits
Too Disgusting To Be Confused
as Self
2025
0.0
Disclosure
as Edna Turnblad (archive footage)
2020
7.8
BEAT. Contour. Snatched. How Drag Queens Shaped the Biggest Makeup Trends
2018
0.0
Studio 54
as Self (archive footage)
2018
6.4
Howard
as Dawn Davenport / Earl Peterson (archive footage)
2018
6.8
Discolocos
as Self (archive footage)
2016
10.0
Night Flight: Born Again
as Self
2016
0.0
Tab Hunter Confidential
as Self (archive footage)
2015
7.3
I Am Divine
as Self (archive footage)
2014
7.3
Cachitos de hierro y cromo
as Self (archive footage)
2013
7.7
The British Guide to Showing Off
as Self (archive footage)
2011
6.6
Uncle Bob
as Self
2010
4.3
DIVINE R.I.P.
as Self (archive footage)
2007
0.0
Girls and Boys - Sex and British Pop
as Self
2005
0.0
Sex 'n' Pop
as Self (archive footage)
2004
2.0
The Cockettes
as Self (archive footage)
2002
6.5
Divine Trash
as Self
2000
7.2
Divine: Shoot Your Shot & Live at the Hacienda
as Self (archive footage)
2000
0.0
In Bad Taste
as Self (archive footage)
1999
8.0
Soul Ache
as Actriz cantante (Singer actress)
1998
3.0
Divine: Shoot Your Shot
1995
4.0
Divine: Live at the Hacienda
1994
6.0
Rhythm Divine: The Story of Disco
as Self (archive footage)
1992
0.0
The Neon Woman
as Flash Storm (archive footage)
1990
0.0
The Incredibly Strange Film Show
as Self
1988
10.0
Out of the Dark
as Det. Langella
1988
5.5
Hairspray
as Edna Turnblad / Arvin Hodgepile
1988
6.8
Queen: Magic Years - A Visual Anthology
as Self
1987
6.5
Queen: The Magic Years vol. 3
as Self
1987
0.0
Queen: The Magic Years vol. 1
as Self
1987
9.0
Trouble in Mind
as Hilly Blue
1985
5.7
Lust in the Dust
as Rosie Velez
1985
6.0
Divine Waters
as Self
1985
7.2
Tales from the Darkside
1984
7.2
Polyester
as Francine Fishpaw
1981
7.0
The Alternative Miss World
as Self - Guest of Honour
1980
1.0
Tally Brown, New York
1979
5.0
Underground and Emigrants
as Self
1976
0.0
Female Trouble
as Dawn Davenport / Earl Peterson
1974
6.9
Pink Flamingos
as Divine / Babs Johnson
1972
6.2
Multiple Maniacs
as Lady Divine
1970
6.3
The Diane Linkletter Story
as Diane Linkletter
1970
5.0
Mondo Trasho
as Divine / Greaser in Alley
1969
5.1
Eat Your Makeup
as Jacqueline Kennedy
1968
7.1
🎬
Roman Candles
as Party Guest / Man with Scarf
1967
6.4
🎬
My Life with the Waters
as Self
N/A
0.0