“Against all odds she stayed true to herself and that makes her very important to any community—not just the gay community. Her aspirations and her determination that she be allowed to be who she decides that she is instead of what other people decide she should be. It’s a very strong, powerful, courageous, very American thing. Saying, ‘I am who I say I am and I’m going to become who I want to become and I’m not going to let anyone deter me from that or let their prejudices stop me.'”
That’s filmmaker James Rasin speaking about the late Warhol transvestite superstar Candy Darling, whose trailblazing life and short-lived career during the late ’60s and early ’70s are artfully captured in Rasin’s fascinating documentary (and his feature-length debut) Beautiful Darling, which is screening Oct. 15-16 as part of the Chicago International Film Festival (CIFF), now entering its second week.
Rasin, who hails from Hinsdale but has made New York City his home for decades, toyed with the idea of making a documentary about the seminal transvestite icon for years. He met Jeremiah Newton at a book party 20 years ago and the two became friends. In the ensuing years Newton often talked about his close friendship with Darling, who had died in 1974 of leukemia after a brief, trailblazing career as one of Warhol’s self-proclaimed “superstars.” Darling, who lived full-time in her film-goddess persona according to her close friends, was the inspiration for Lou Reed’s song “Walk on the Wild Side;” starred for Warhol in Flesh and Women in Revolt; and was personally chosen by Tennessee Williams to star in a revival of his play Small Craft Warnings. Peter Hujar’s infamous photo taken on her deathbed (at Darling’s insistence) was used as the cover for the 2005 Antony & the Johnson’s album I Am a Bird Now.
Newton, who had lived with Darling at various points during their joint struggles in Manhattan, was given access to her personal belongings after her death by Darling’s mother; the memorabilia ended up in his apartment. At one point he expressed interest in having Rasin, who had been writing plays and making short films, into turning Darling’s story into a film. “It kind of evolved over 20 years, let’s say,” said Rasin in a telephone interview from New York. “But when we finally started kicking around the idea it went pretty quickly.”
Rasin was aware that Newton had items of Darling memorabilia but once he discovered the extent of Newton’s cache—including diaries, photos, audio cassettes, videotapes and many other items—that Newton had archived over the years in what Rasin describes with a laugh as “Jeremiah’s unique filing system,” he felt compelled to bring Darling’s story to the world. “It heightened the treasure hunt aspect of putting the movie together,” Rasin recalled.
The resulting film—which mixes the priceless memorabilia (including rare footage of Candy in performance, hanging out with Warhol, Dennis Hopper, and Jane Fonda to footage of Tennessee Williams backstage chatting with Darling) ; diary excerpts read by Chloe Sevigny; and new interviews with Holly Woodlawn, John Waters, Fran Lebowitz and other friends of Darlings—is an expressive portrait of the young man from Long Island once known as James Slattery, who left a singular legacy as Candy Darling, the self-made creation inspired by Hollywood glamour girl Kim Novak and others.
Beautiful Darling is also a moving tribute to the close friendship of Darling and Newton, whose memories of that friendship are poignant, sharp and funny. (The film is bookended with footage of Newton arranging for a final burial place for both Candy’s ashes and his mothers.) Rasin and Newton will be in town for the screenings of Beautiful Darling Oct. 15-16 at AMC River East 21, 322 E. Illinois, the sole venue for CIFF screenings.
Other LGBT-themed films playing as part of the Fest’s OUTrageous program in the last week of the festival include Amphetamine (Hong Kong), which screens Oct. 15, 16; For 80 Days (Spain), which screens Oct. 18, 19; Heartbeats (Canada), which runs Oct. 14-15; and Loose Cannons (Italy), which screens Oct. 13, 15.
All films will screen at the AMC River East 21, 322 E. Illinois. Complete information on tickets, show times, special events are available by calling 312-332-FILM (3456) or online at www.chicagofilmfestival.com.