Christine Jorgensen

Jorgensen’s transition was the subject of a New York Daily News front page story, which made her instantly famous and the first American trans celebrity. Though she desired a quiet life, she saw public appearances as the only way that she could make a living upon returning home from Copenhagen as a trans woman, and so she used her new platform to promote and advocate for the trans community particularly through lectures. Her charm and wit made her a household name. Here, she poses in a studio staged as a beach scene.