KATHY GRIFFIN, MELANIE GRIFFITH, HOLLAND TAYLOR, DOT JONES AND KATHY KINNEY
JOIN BEST IN DRAG SHOW® 2014 AS CELEBRITY JUDGES
PATRICK RUSH TO RETURN AS HOST FOR 12TH ANNIVERSARY
OF AID FOR AIDS FUNDRAISER
October 5, 2014
photo courtesy of JPI Studios.
Los Angeles, September 14, 2014 – Best In Drag Show® – the outrageous and long-running annual fundraiser for Aid for AIDS – has announced that two-time Emmy Award winning comedienne Kathy Griffin will headline this year’s event for her 11th time. Following her opening monologue, Griffin will join the celebrity judge panel, alongside the previously announced Academy Award nominee Melanie Griffith, Emmy Award winner Holland Taylor, Emmy Award nominee Dot Jones, and Kathy Kinney. Additional celebrity judges will be announced soon.
The 12th annual Best in Drag Show® will be held on October 5, 2014 at the Orpheum Theatre in downtown Los Angeles.
Event co-founder Patrick Rush will return to host the show. Jeffrey Drew, long-time lead star throughout the history of Best In Drag Show®, will once again direct, choreograph and helm the 2014 production.
The 2014 contestants are Seth Hancock (Miss Alaska: Tastee Freez), Sean Kim (Miss Hawaii: Suh Nami), Todd Wing (Miss Maine: Dotty Rae Johnson), David A. Flores (Miss New Mexico: D’vida Loca), Nicholas Mancini (Miss New York: Po Mi Saki), and Marcus Barela (Miss Washington: Willamina Wonka).
photo courtesy of JPI Studios.
Best in Drag Show® was originally founded by Alexis Pittman with a small group of friends in his West Hollywood living room in 1989. Then called Battle for the Tiara, the event raised $400, collected from twenty people. Due to its increasing popularity, the show was moved to subsequently larger venues and has grown into a large and highly-anticipated annual beauty pageant spoof that makes fun of itself, while keeping the focus on giving back to the community. The current version has run since 2003, and has raised over $3 million for Aid for AIDS, in support of the work of the non-profit throughout Los Angeles County to prevent homelessness and hunger for men, women, and families living with HIV/AIDS.
To purchase tickets, visit: www.bestindragshow.org or call 323-344-4880
About Aid for AIDS
Aid for AIDS, a program of Alliance for Housing and Healing, was founded in 1983 by a group of friends in the Hollywood gay community to provide at-home care for patients facing the end stages of the disease. Since then, AFA has become Los Angeles County’s premier, non-profit provider of direct financial assistance to those impoverished and disabled by HIV/AIDS.
To provide a robust continuum of care and meet the changing needs of the community, AFA merged with the Serra Project in 2009 to form the Alliance for Housing and Healing which works to prevent homelessness among persons living with HIV/AIDS. Our mission is to provide essential housing and supportive services to people living in poverty with HIV/AIDS and other challenging health conditions. 94% of all revenue goes directly to client services. More than 18,000 individuals have received assistance.
