Cast & creator
Divine
Best known for Late Night with David Letterman, Tales from the Darkside, Cachitos de hierro y cromo
Divine (October 19, 1945 – March 7, 1988), né Harris Glenn Milstead, was an American actor, singer and drag queen. Described by People magazine as the "Drag Queen of the Century", Divine often performed female roles in both cinema and theater and also appeared in women's clothing in musical performances. Even so, he considered himself to be a character actor and performed male roles in a number of his later films. He was often associated with independent filmmaker John Waters and starred in ten of Waters's films, usually in a leading role. Concurrent with his acting career, he also had a successful career as a disco singer during the 1980s, at one point being described as "the most successful and in-demand disco performer in the world." Born in Baltimore, Maryland, into a conservative, wealthy middle class family, he became involved with John Waters and his acting troupe, the Dreamlanders, in the mid-1960s and starred in a number of Waters's early films such as Mondo Trasho, Multiple Maniacs, Pink Flamingos and Female Trouble. These films have since become cult classics. In the 1970s, Milstead made the transition to theater and appeared in a number of productions, including Women Behind Bars and The Neon Woman, while continuing to star in such films as Polyester, Lust in the Dust and Hairspray. The New York Times said of Milstead's '80s films: "Those who could get past the unremitting weirdness of Divine's performance discovered that the actor/actress had genuine talent, including a natural sense of comic timing and an uncanny gift for slapstick." He was also described as "one of the few truly radical and essential artists of the century… was an audacious symbol of man's quest for liberty and freedom." Since his death, Divine has remained a cult figure, particularly with those in the LGBT community.
Also known as: Harris Glenn Milstead
50
film credits
6
television credits
53
1967–2025 · acting roles
6.5
average across scored titles
Signature credits
Known for
Across film & television
Filmography (56)
Showing 56 of 56 credits
Late Night with David Letterman
Self - Guest
1982
Tales from the Darkside
1984
Cachitos de hierro y cromo
Self (archive footage)
2013
Pink Flamingos
Divine / Babs Johnson
1972
The Incredibly Strange Film Show
Self
1988
Hairspray
Edna Turnblad / Arvin Hodgepile
1988
Polyester
Francine Fishpaw
1981
Girls and Boys - Sex and British Pop
Self
2005
Multiple Maniacs
Lady Divine
1970
Lust in the Dust
Rosie Velez
1985
Out of the Dark
Det. Langella
1988Out of the Dark
In Memory Of
1988
Howard
Dawn Davenport / Earl Peterson (archive footage)
2018
Studio 54
Self (archive footage)
2018
Female Trouble
Dawn Davenport / Earl Peterson
1976
Disclosure
Edna Turnblad (archive footage)
2020
Trouble in Mind
Hilly Blue
1985
The Cockettes
Self (archive footage)
2002
I Am Divine
Self (archive)
2014New Line: Independent Legacies
Self (archive footage)
Starz Inside: In the Gutter
Self (archive)
2008
Tab Hunter Confidential
Self (archive)
2015
BEAT. Contour. Snatched. How Drag Queens Shaped the Biggest Makeup Trends
Self
2018
Divine Trash
Self
2000Roman Candles
Party Guest / Man with Scarf
1967
Tally Brown, New York
1979Divine Waters
Self
1985
Night Flight: Born Again
Self
2016
The Roots of 'Hairspray'
Self (archive)
2007
The British Guide to Showing Off
Self (archive footage)
2011
Soul Ache
Actriz cantante (Singer actress)
1998
Queen: The Magic Years vol. 1
Self
1987
In Bad Taste
Self (archive footage)
1999
Rhythm Divine: The Story of Disco
Self (archive footage)
1992
Queen: The Magic Years vol. 3
Self
1987
Queen: Magic Years - A Visual Anthology
Self
1987
Crime and Beauty: Remembering "Female Trouble"
Self (archive)
2018
The Diane Linkletter Story
Diane Linkletter
1970The Diane Linkletter Story
Writer
1970Crime and Beauty: Making ‘Female Trouble’
Self (archive)
2018My Life with the Waters
Self
2021
The Alternative Miss World
Self - Guest of Honour
1980
Eat Your Makeup
Jacqueline Kennedy
1968
Mondo Trasho
Divine / Greaser in Alley
1969
DIVINE R.I.P.
Self (archive footage)
2007
Uncle Bob
Self
2010
Too Disgusting To Be Confused
Self
2025
Underground and Emigrants
Self
1976
Divine: Live at the Hacienda
1994Divine: Live at the Hacienda
Writer
1994
Sex 'n' Pop
Self (archive footage)
2004
The Neon Woman
Flash Storm (archive footage)
1990
Discolocos
Self (archive footage)
2016
Divine: Shoot Your Shot
1995
The Sex of Death e o Homem Invisível
Singer (archive footage)
2012
Divine: Shoot Your Shot & Live at the Hacienda
Self (archive footage)
2000