The World’s Biggest Drag King Competition is Happening in SF
Left to right: Fudgie Frottage, Lotus Boy, Fontaine Blue and the canine spokesmodel is Jasper. Photo by Heidi Calvert
By Anna Bergman
Two legends of Drag, who have been performing for three decades each, will be appearing at the San Francisco Drag King Contest, the biggest Drag King Contest in the world. It’s all going down on Sunday, September 8 at Oasis SF.
Mo B. Dick star of the John Water’s film “Pecker” and local impresario Fudgie Frottage “The Man with the Biggest Balls in Show Business” bring their well-honed talents to the stage for a show to benefit Rocket Dog Rescue and PAWS.
Anna Bergman: As a performer and historian, what is your take on Drag Kings finally getting recognized in the 21st century?
Mo B. Dick: It’s been thrilling to witness the rise and popularity of drag all over the world. Drag Kings have achieved media recognition in spurts over the years, so it’s nothing new for us but new for the public at large. Despite the media’s awareness, Drag Kings are still largely unknown because there is no representation on RuPaul’s Drag Race, a wildly popular reality television show that has achieved world domination. Those of us who have been recognized are grateful for the accolades and acknowledgement. From an historical perspective, Drag King’s of today mirror the same adulation and accomplishments that male impersonators of yesteryear relished in.
AB: What do you love most about San Francisco?
MBD: I love the freedom and fun that San Francisco offers. You can let your freak flag fly and no one gives a fuck. The drag performers are notoriously the most wild and innovative, so I always look forward to the annual SFDK Contest.
AB: How long have you known Fudgie?
MBD: Fudgie and I have been friends since 1996. He’s produced numerous Club Casanova shows that I’ve toured in SF. We’ve collaborated on a number of fun projects together too.
Fudgie Frottage: Back in the day, I had a monthly club called DragStrip on Sunday nights, the shows would start at midnight and go until 2am — we would have at least 10 acts, mostly Queens, as there were only a handful of Kings back then. We also had a stripper or burlesque performer mixed in and a fetish lounge called Dungeons and Drag Queens. This was years before Tr@nnyshack was launched.
AB: Mo, were the Men of Club Casanova tours extensive? Have you performed much abroad — would you say you are the most traveled King?
MBD: The Men of Club Casanova tours were influential in inspiring others to do drag and form troupes. The 3 tours of US and CN that we did each lasted 6 to 8 weeks and we covered a lot of territory. It was a safer time for Drag Kings to travel. I don’t think I’d do it today under this heinous political climate.
I’m definitely not the most traveled performing King though I have been fortunate to perform in a lot of places. Next April I’m performing in Mallorca, Barcelona & Portugal and can’t wait!
AB: Tell us about Dragkinghistory.com, do you get more work lecturing as a historian, or appearing in drag shows
MBD: DragKingHistory.com is a virtual resource library that provides visibility and empowerment for the marginalized by showcasing the extensive history of drag kings, male impersonators, breeches roles and the gender free who don men’s attire for theatrical purposes from antiquity to today. I co-founded it in January 2018, and in July 2020 granted permission for the site to be archived in The U.S. Library of Congress. This project is my main focus so I get more work doing lectures than performing in drag shows. My current goal is to create a docuseries on Drag King History.
AB: Do you get hit on when you are in drag + are your prospects more cis male or female?
MBD: I used to get hit on a lot in NYC when in drag by both cis males and females because back in the day I was passing and not as flashy as I am now. These days I wear big colorful wigs and sequin suits so it’s obvious I’m in drag.
FF: One time after Folsom St. Fair, Willy Ryder who was ‘Mr. Club Casanova’ pushed me into the back room at My Place, a notorious establishment on Folsom St. I immediately pulled my realistic rubber cock out to join in the fun, soon it was swallowed up by some hungry bottom. Of course I was in Leather Daddy drag. Too bad that bar closed, it is greatly missed. People would jump up on the bar to dance to great rock and punk music and the bartender would pour 151 proof booze on the bar and light it on fire for the dancers to stomp out.
AB: What advice can you give young Dragsters today?
MBD: Don’t take yourself seriously, have fun, be entertaining, create a character that people want to know, know your lyrics, add zing to your costume, and promote the shit out of yourself in fun ways.
FF: I agree, but also want to add that performers should know their history so that they are not using names that are already established or signature numbers. I also want to say that you don’t have to base your performances on the RPDR formula – think outside the box. Creativity is not something that should be harnessed or predictable. SFDK is more about breaking rules than making rules.
AB: Anything else you’d like to add?
MBD: Be sure to follow me on IG, FB, TikTok @mrmobdick and @dragkinghistory
FF: Don’t miss SFDK28 you can still get GA tix and it will stream on OasisTV so there is no excuse to miss it. The theme this year is Classic Rock – Elastic Cock and we have a wild opening number that will blow you away as will the rest of the show. The Kings competing are in it to win it and the past title holder/All Stars performing will also knock your jocks off.
More info at: SFDragKingContest.com
Anna Bergman is the author of CIVIL:THE WORLD OF BAYARD RUSTIN
Howdy! My name is Katy Atchison and I'm an Associate Editor for Broke-Ass Stuart.
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