December 4th

12-05-1932 – 05-09-2020 Little Richard (Richard Wayne Penniman) – Born in Macon, Georgia. He was an American recording artist, songwriter, and musician. Little Richard has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. His recording of Tutti Frutti (1955) was included in the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry in 2010. In 2015, the National Museum of African American History and Culture honored Little Richard for his pivotal role in the formation of popular music and in helping to shatter the color line on the American music charts. In 1995, he told Penthouse that he always knew he was gay. He died of bone cancer on May 9, 2020.

12-05-1968 Margaret Cho – Born in San Francisco, California. She is a Korean-American comedian, actress, author, and singer/songwriter. She is openly bisexual and an advocate and supporter of LGBT rights. She has won awards for her humanitarian efforts on behalf of women, Asians, and the LGBT community. Cho has written two books – I’m the One That I Want and I Have Chosen to Stay and Fight. Cho married Al Ridenour in 2003 and filed for divorce in August 2015.

12-05-1886 – 01-03-1960 Constance Spry – Born in Derby, United Kingdom. She was a famous British educator. In 1928 she gave up teaching and opened her first floral shop. Spry caused a sensation in fashionable society with her arrangements. In 1936 she did the flower arrangements for the royal wedding of the Duke of Gloucester and the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. According to the biographer Diana Souhami, she had a romantic relationship with the lesbian painter Gluck.

12-05-1901 – 10-16-1965   Blyth Daly – Born in London, England. She was an actress who appeared on Broadway and was also in several silent and sound films. Daly is better known for her relationships and friendships in the lesbian acting community of both Hollywood and Broadway. She, along with Tallulah Bankhead, Estelle Winwood, and Eva Le Gallienne, was dubbed “The Four Riders of the Algonquin.” Daly was bisexual and had affairs with actresses Ann Andrews, Estelle Winwood, and Tallulah Bankhead.

12-05-1967 Amanda Lepore – Born in Cedar Grove, New Jersey. She is a transgender pioneer. She underwent sex reassignment surgery at the age of 19 in Yonkers, New York. Lepore is an NYC transgender nightlife entertainer, American model, performance artist, and recording artist. She was part of the True Colors Tour 2007, a benefit tour sponsored by Logo channel, hosted by comedian Margaret Cho, and headlined by Cyndi Lauper.

12-05-1978 Micah Kellner – Born in Morristown, New Jersey. He is a New York Democrat; member of the New York State Assembly representing the 76th district serving until December 31, 2014. Kellner is an advocate for the disabled (Kellner was born with cerebral palsy). He is openly bisexual and the first openly bisexual person elected to the New York State Assembly. In 2010 Kellner received the Brenda Howard Award, which “recognizes an individual or organization whose work on behalf of the LGBT Community best exemplifies the vision, principles, and community service of the late bisexual rights activist Brenda Howard, and who serves as a positive and visible role model for the Bisexual Community.”

12-05-1994   Emily Estefan – Born in Miami Beach, Florida. She is the daughter of Emilio Estefan & Gloria Estefan. In 2016, she graduated form Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Her first major concert was held on February 2, 2017, at Gusman Concert Hall during the University of Miami Frost School of Music’s Festival Miami. She played drums, guitar, and keyboard. Later the same year, Estefan paid tribute to her mother at the Kennedy Center Honors by performing the song Reach. Estefan is openly lesbian and her parents are LGBTQ advocates. She has been in a relationship with Gemeny Hernandez since December 2016. In June 2020, in honor of the 50th anniversary of the first LGBTQ Pride parade, Queerty named her among the fifty heroes “leading the nation toward equality, acceptance, and dignity for all people”.

(Photo from Modern Drummer Magazine)