
My friend Misty, a.k.a. Miss Demeanor, was an art-world icon. She’s captured in one of photographer Nan Goldin’s most famous photos, “Misty and Jimmy Paulette in a Taxi, NYC.” The photo, from 1991, was shot during the day—an unusual time for drag-queen starlets to be dolled up in wigs and heavy makeup. A couple of years later, it was published in Goldin’s book The Other Side, featuring a slew of edgy gender-benders.
Misty was found dead earlier this month in her apartment in Long Island City. I don’t know the cause. We only recently re-entered each other’s lives, and there was much about her that I didn’t know.