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In a clip from the documentary Studs on a Soapbox (2000), Studs Terkel talks about Chicago-style television of the 1940s and '50s, and in particular his show Studs' Place, a live sitcom set in a Chicago diner.

Watch the full documentary for free…

Opened in 1969 and still in service, this one of the oldest drag bars in the city (cited in a publication in 1975 for having "female impersonators")

Female impersonator appearances (1882)

an image of male impersonator Hetty King

A layout of Haymarket Theatre, a place where Vesta Tilley, male impersonator, was voted best dressed man in Chicago (1903) but also performed here in March 1898.

An image of Garrick Theatre (May 1958, Chicago Tribune) where Vesta Tilley, male impersonator, performed male and female roles in the play "Algy" in October 1903

A speakeasy, little bohemia that attracted "free-thinking" people and was the site of a lot of prostitution and female impersonation

Screenshot from the 1925 film His People

Screenshot from 1925 film His People

Screenshot from 1925 film His People

Screenshot from 1925 film His People

Exterior view of the pavilion for the Republic of Haiti at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, Illinois (1893)