A Low Life in High Heels: The Holly Woodlawn Story

by Holly Woodlawn, Jeffrey Copeland

Birth Name Haraldo Santiago Franceschi Rodriguez Danhakl Trivia The legendary Lou Reed song "Take a Walk on the Wild Side" refers to Holly, indelibly imprinting her story in American pop culture. "Holly Came From Miami, F-L-A..." are the beginning lyrics forever describing Holly's arrival in New York City and ultimate imprint on the landscape of 1970s chique. Made his/her nightclub debut in 1973 at New York's Reno Sweeney's on a double bill with Betty Jane Rhodes. He was born Harold Danhakl in Juana Diaz, Puerto Rico. The product of a short-lived marriage between his mother, Aminta, and an American soldier of German descent stationed in Puerto Rico. Although his mother Aminta married Joseph Ajzenberg when Harold was only five years of age, he wasn't legally adopted as by his step-father until the age of fifteen, changing his last name to Ajzenberg. She was hired by the producers of Tootsie (1982) to coach actor Dustin Hoffman in his role as 'Michael Dorsey/Dorothy Michaels' in the art of being a man acting as a woman in films. Is the last surviving queen of Andy Warhol's famous drag queen sidekicks that included Candy Darling and Jackie Curtis. Personal Quotes If I'm wearing pants, call me a man. If I'm wearing a dress, call me a cab!

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Memoir, LGBT, Biography Memoir, Queer, Transgender

305 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 1991

About the author

She was a transgender Puerto Rican actress and Warhol superstar who appeared in his movies Trash (1970) and Women in Revolt (1972).
She was probably best known as the "he who was a she" in Lou Reed's hit pop song Walk on the Wild Side.

Reviews

[Thirstyicon · Rating 3 out of 5]

The same thing I learned from Rocky Horror and countless (gay) icons and stars: Don't Dream It, Be It. Oh and while drugs are fun: consume them, don't let them consume you.

[Gilbert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holly Woodlawn led a remarkable life. Don't know if she is still alive (hope so). A true survivor. Her performance in "Andy Warhol's Trash" is a comedic classic.

[Alvin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Woodlawn led a wild life on the wildest fringes of midcentury America's wild bohemia. Expect lots of drugs, drag, avant garde theater, sexual promiscuity, kinky cabaret, and cocktails, cocktails, cocktails! Her escapades would be fun enough to read about if they only involved her, but the book is full of world renowned celebrities, haute monde slummers, and delightfully fabulous nobodies. Quite amazingly, Woodlawn was nonbinary before the term had come into use and in spite of serious social consequences. Thankfully, her commitment to glamor and fun sustained her through the hard times, as well as the good. Her life could and should be an inspiration to us all!

[Drew Praskovich · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holly Woodlawn is just about the funniest and most glamorous superstar to walk this planet. Getting to spend 300 pages with her as she dreams and drudges her way from Puerto Rico to the Warhol 60s and 70s of New York to Hollywood… is incredible.

This book is in DIRE need of a reprint. It would be absolutely massive.

It’s laugh out loud funny and beyond transgressive. A trailblazer and forever hero of mine.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you can get your hands on this jewel of book please read it. I got interested in the Warhol Superstars after reading most of Lou Reed: A Life by Anthony DeCurtis. I read about Holly Woodlawn's book and found a copy on Amazon. I'm so happy I did.

Woodlawn is a delightful writer. Her words are carefully crafted and witty, kind of like if a drag queen read and David Sedaris melded together. Her story is one of personal triumph, personal struggle and living through major LGTBQ events. It's a fist hand account of 20th century queer history coming from a trans woman. Stonewall and AIDS epidemic haunt the story because we all know it's coming, but they don't take center stage until end. The books hits on heartbreaking more than a few times, but our Superstar lived through it.

Holly Woodlawn passed away in 2015. It's amazing that she made it through the 60s and 70s and we're lucky to have had her for as long as we did. I would now add Holly Woodlawn to my list of dead celebrities that I would love to have lunch with, and it's all because of this beautifully written book. This is a must read for anyone interested in LGTBQ history.

[Andy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holly Woodlawn's memoirs are essential reading not only for those interested in the Andy Warhol Factory legend, but is as close as we're going to get to a full-blown (pun) biography on the Warhol Trans-Triad: Holly, Candy Darling and Jackie Curtis. There's tons of dirt on the three divas for your entertainment, as well as fascinating info on Divine, and an inkling on what might have killed him (heart attack? nope!). Tightly told with very little chaff, Low Life In High Heels is the memoir to gobble up this summer.

[Brenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

i think I would have liked this better if I had had some background knowledge on the Andy Warhol Factory scene

[Erica Makowski · Rating 5 out of 5]

i don't think any amount of words can explain what a fucking badass holly was. i will forever be indebted to her and i love that she doesn't mince words in this book. she isn't full of herself and doesn't feel the need to write in a stuck up manner, whether she's writing about being thrown in jail for impersonating a french dignitary's wife, or crashing the Factory to demand money from a*dy w*rhol, or detransitioning for a while to get a "straight" job, she writes in a voice that is uniquely hers. all i can say is RIP angel, rest easy.

[Eleanor Kallo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an absolute ride. Honestly, I didn't know who Holly Woodlawn was before I started it (other than a glance through her wiki page) but regardless it was a fantastic glance into the life of a trans woman/female impersonator/super star from the late 60s through the early 80s. There were things I could have done with out (like the incredibly detailed description of shooting heroin, or the very uncomfortable "relationship" she had with a 15 year old when she was in her 20s) but overall her voice was endlessly fabulous & entertaining, so it was a fun read!

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a really phenomenal portrait of a fascinating person and a remarkable life, told with tonnes of personality by miss Holly Woodlawn herself. My favourite memoir of the month, and one of my favourite trans memoirs of all time.

On the face of it, it would regardless be a fabulous portrait of an incredible time in New York night life history, art history, and gay history. But told with as much character and humour as Holly Woodlawn has to offer, it would endlessly compelling even if it didn't contain a single mention of Candy Darling or Divine or Warhol or what have you.

[Dottor Dama · Rating 5 out of 5]

decisamente consigliato a tutti gli amanti di Andy Wharol, la Factory e tutto il movimento underground a cavallo tra gli anni 60 e 70 in particolare a New York ma non solo. Conoscevo solo di nome Holly Woodlawn, iconica attrice trans di "Trash" : la sua vita è stata a dir poco un film di avventura! libro ben scritto in prima persona, a volte molto crudo a volte divertente, un pendolo tra la miseria e la celebrità.

[Blane · Rating 5 out of 5]

"I was a ballsy broad--and I had the balls to prove it!"

Who knows whether the events chronicled here actually happened. Who cares? The stories are hilarious and over-the-top bitchy with clever turns of phrase. And exclamation points!!! Lots of exclamation points!!!

"Holly came from Miami, F-L-A..."

[Luna · Rating 4 out of 5]

A hilarious and informative story by Warhol super-starlet Holly Woodlawn. Woodlawn's memoir and social commentary are still striking today, and her hijinks in New York as an out-of-control bohemian transgender druggie must be read to be believed.

[fiona · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

what a life and time and collection of people

took me so long to finish because it kept leading me onto side quests which led to rabbit hole

witty and had many chuckling moments but definitely suffers from tonal whiplash and erratic timelines

[z · Rating 5 out of 5]

free pussy!!!!
this book was amazing. so grateful that she took the time to get this published and share her experience of living in these wild times. bless you holly woodlawn! <3

[Kathy Gilbert · Rating 3 out of 5]

My daughter had to get this through interlibrary loan - difficult to find and super expensive to buy. Pretty fantastic story, but if even 50% of it is true this woman has to be given a lot of credit for making it through her life alive. Actually I suppose it's all true, just difficult to believe! She died in December 2015 and was only 4 years older than I am. Makes my life look very tame compared to hers. Interesting googling some of the names she drops while I was reading - some of her cohorts were also fascinating people, and I plan to get the movies Trash and Women in Revolt and take a look at them sometime when Ron is gone. I am just fascinated by transgender people in general. If you've heard the Lou Reed song "Walk on the Wild Side," you'll recognize Holly in the first stanza. The three girls mentioned in the song did indeed walk on the wild side.

[Bri Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was loaned this my freshman year at Reed - a welcome escape somewhere between Heroditus and the Letters of the Younger Pliny. Now it qualifies loosely as work related research...

Regardless of circumstance, it is a fun, hyper-campy tell-most of the life and times of a bubbly, unwittingly avant garde transvestite, rocketed through 15 minutes of New York infamy as one of Warhol's Superstars.

Read it as the transgender (cleaned up) alternative to Anger's "Hollywood Babylon".

[Ezra · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a fun read that dishes the dirt while also talking in deep and complicated ways about intersections of identity, discrimination, and resilience through issues such as overincarceration of black and brown people, the targeting of trans people for brutality within prisons, considering sex re-assignment surgery, the dynamics of exploitation in Warhol's world, and many stories of queers fighting back and surviving. Ms Woodlawn models telling deeper truths through trashtalk!

[Tom Schulte · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lou Reed, on Transformer (1972) in "Walk On The Wild Side" gave a brief biography of her:

Holly came from Miami, Fla
Hitchhiked her way across the USA.
Plucked her eyebrows on the way
Shaved her leg and then he was she

This books amplifies the sordid fun and games, sorrow and pain of Andy Warhol's New York and being Divine's roommate.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun read...as I've always had a fascination about the Warhol scene. Holly certainly lived a fascinating life...and anybody that inspires the lyrics to Take a Walk on the Wild Side is alright by me.

[Selena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Money, Fame, and Power mean nothing if it kills you. Live for love only.

[Geary Brewer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Interesting and self-abosrbed. She needed to know she had a life.

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had forgotten I had read this during my Book City days until Patti Smith mentioned her in Just Kids.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even if you're not particularly interested in the Warhol crowd, this is a great read.

[Leo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Utterly engaging from start to finish, and written with great honesty and humour. This is an eye-popping glimpse into a truly bizarre, yet pivotal period in pop culture history.

[Jer'ell Hartsig · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed and thought it was an entertaining read. Holly Woodlawn was a trailblazer and before her time transvestite, she claimed her fame as one of Warhol's protege.