Melinda Wilson

Abstract

Melinda Wilson is a much-beloved drag performer born in Pittsburgh, raised in Detroit, a longtime transplant to Lynn in the 1980s and 1990s, and a current resident of Manchester, NH. Before coming to Lynn, Melinda moved to Boston in 1978, where she began performing at Jacques Cabaret. Her interview was conducted in December 2023 at a 47 Central Reunion organized by George Chakoutis in Olde Thyme Italian restaurant. She discusses the challenges of growing up as a poor, gay black boy in segregated Detroit, where one could be arrested for failing to wear three articles of male clothing. She found herself and her passion for drag at Fran’s Place and 47 Central.