This really makes me rethink the characters decisions. Usually these women are depicted as stupid, vain, or selfish. But I sympathize with them way more when their options written this way
In 1934-1936, trans brothers Mark and David Ferrow of Yarmouth, UK, both transitioned at age 13 with full parental support. Mark medically transitioned first in 1939 at 17 and his brother soon followed. “Though we have been girls, we have both felt men at heart,” Mark told a reporter. Their stories show that trans youth can grow up to be happy, celebrated adults.
David lived in their hometown of Great Yarmouth, UK for the rest of his life. He became a local icon. At 15, he started selling books. He later ran a wildly successful bookshop until death in 2006, age 81, 68 years after transitioning. He had a daughter, Jan, who supported his work. The whole town adored him. Why, yes, that is a mug of his face.
Mark, always passionate about art, joined the Kirby Muxlue Players troupe as a writer and traveled throughout the UK. His David Gower painting is currently in the UK’s National Portrait Gallery! His art still hangs in collections all over the country - although it’s almost never recognized as being by a trans artist. Mark married Edna Hall in 1942 and died in 1991, age 68, in Leicester.
It’s important to mention that it’s unclear if both men are intersex despite the reports. At the time, it was customary for non-intersex trans people to claim intersex conditions in order to access care (e.g. Roberta Cowell). Regardless if they were trans or intersex and trans, I would hate their underreported stories to be forgotten!
Rare photos from trans history: Olympic runner and Zdeněk Koubek styles Cinda Glenn’s hair, 1936. Koubek was one of the first trans men to gain international fame after he transitioned in 1935.
this is inspiring weirdly complex emotions in me. like, it’s the fucking 1930s. I can hear the mid-atlantic newsreel voice. the fact that it plays coy with why he knows so much about women’s hairstyles, but like, as a funny surprise, not as shock and horror. the fact that it never deadnames him or uses incorrect pronouns. the fact that he looks like Mickey Rooney. idk it’s just making me feel feelings.
