Not Simply Divine

by Bernard Jay

Divine's former personal manager takes readers through a labyrinth of American subcultures, countercultures, and glimmering nightlife to tell this no-holds-barred story of a man who did anything to become a star

Another breathtaking work from Simon & Schuster, Not Simply Divine is he biography that tells all, exploring the subcultures of America—experimental movies, gay theater, glittering nightlife, base debauchery—the world of Divine, the cross-dressing cult hero whose sudden death came on the eve of his greatest stardom.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Gay, LGBT

240 pages, Paperback

First published August 10, 1994

Reviews

[Robert Maier · Rating 4 out of 5]

Waters cultists hate Bernard Jay, but he speaks the truth and illuminates the sad plight of Divine more than Waters ever tried.

[Jules Vilmur · Rating 2 out of 5]

The first thing I have to tell you about "Not Simply Divine" is that Bernard Jay is NOT a storyteller. He is a competent recorder of facts, and as Divine's long-time manager, he has a wealth of facts at his fingertips, but little talent for turning those facts into a compelling narrative. I picked up this book after falling madly in love with the Antony and the Johnsons track "Divine", and finished the book feeling like that 3.42 minute track gave me more than this 200+ page bio did.

[Leah Dickenson · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s very hard to get past the mean-spirited tone of this book. It’s clear the author and the subject had a long, close and challenging relationship that bounced from love to hate to love, but it’s disconcerting to read some of Jay’s criticisms of Divine. Open-eyed critisicm of character is one thing, but throughout the book Jay makes some mean and nasty comments about Divine’s weight and appearance. It’s not a nice thing for a supposed close friend to do.

[Warren · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was so ecstatic to find a biography of Divine but this was so horribly fatphobic, transphobic and bitter I couldn't glean any of the expected goodness out of it. Bernard Jay, this was a total crime.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

Enjoyed hearing Divine's story but the emphasis on Divine's selfishness and large stature was unnecessary.

[Jim Jones · Rating 2 out of 5]

Written by a bitter, fatphobic ex-manager, this biography portrays Divine as a selfish and angry spendaholic. It's poorly done, and is bitter and mean-spirited, with only an occasionally funny story. Very short shift is given to her early movie making years with John Waters. Not the biography most people want to read.

[Bridget · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I love Divine and hate that she left the world so early.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

All the details and more. So many details …

[Beth Ann · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you enjoy John Waters movies, and you want to learn more about Divine, don't pick up this tome unless you want to read a bitter hatchet job. Bernard Jay wrote this book a short time after Divine's death, and it reads like a final attempt to wring some dough from the cash cow.

I stress the word cow because Jay emphasizes his disgust with Divine's corpulent body throughout the book. Some gay subcultures may emphasize physical beauty in face and form, but Divine was a drag performer and actor, and his sphere was more open to non-traditional looks. Divine pioneered the drag queen as clown look, and he even filled it with menace at times.

Jay does seem conflicted in his feelings about Divine. While Jay rails against Divine's appearance, selfishness, and other endlessly stated poor behaviors, Jay does champion Divine as an actor. Jay wants to convince others that Divine wasn't only a drag queen.

That goal was admirable except for the fact that Jay portrays himself as Divine's only ally in this quest. Jay knocks down Waters as a user and dismisses him as no real friend of Divine.

Showbiz relationships may get complicated, especially when one party earns his money off of another, but Jay should have remembered that all his complaints about Waters' exploitation of Divine would only serve to make readers wonder about Jay's.

While Divine's mother claims that Jay fabricated some of his stories (She wrote her own book that portrays her son very differently), Jay would know incidents of her son's life she wouldn't. Jay lived and travelled with Divine, and nothing is more intimate than discovering one's friend dead.

I can't help but wonder if this book might have been different if Jay had waited longer to write it. He expresses admiration and affection for Divine. Maybe his book also expresses his anger at being left behind.

[Mark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Although I have only rated this book two stars, I probably enjoyed it a little more than that would suggest. However, it wasn't exactly gripping, or revelatory in any way. It was amusing throughout, how the author kept on referring to the great talent of "his" star, when the book showed just how much can be achieved from so little! Divine's initial "act", when he actually tried to earn a living, rather than just appearing in John Waters' early films, seemed to consist of 10 minutes of shouting "F*ck you!" at the audience, yet they still "loved him"!

The one refreshing thing about this book was that its subject wasn't portrayed through rose-tinted glasses. Divine, or Harris Glenn Milstead, doesn't appear to have been a very nice person at all, with a pretty psychopathic attitude towards his parents and anyone who came into his orbit. It was also interesting to read about the problems that were caused by his excessive weight; the sweating, the tiredness, etc. which did contrast with the exuberant performer.

Ultimately, though, Divine turned out to be exactly what I had expected and this book did nothing to change my view of this performer, who made me laugh occasionally and whose music career at least I derived pleasure from in the 1980s.

[Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great insight to the life of the fabulous performer Divine. As you can imagine, it's a very interesting, and often sad, tale, as told by Divine's former manager.

[Nevada McPherson]

With the new movie out about Divine, I remembered reading this book. It's very good and provides a lot of insight into Divine's (and Glenn's--that was his real name) persona and career.