Peccadillo Pictures presents
A film by TODD STEPHENS
SWAN SONG
OUT NOW on DVD/ BLU-RAY AND VOD
With exclusive additional content and interviews
Available on most UK VOD platforms including Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Google Play and PeccadilloPOD
Starring:
UDO KIER, JENNIFER COOLIDGE, MICHAEL URIE and LINDA EVANS
With legendary actor Udo Kier (My Own Private Idaho) relishing retired hairdresser Mister Pat in Todd Stephens’s SWAN SONG, due for UK release on DVD, blu-ray & VOD on 29th August, the director found inspiration from a local childhood character of the same name that helped him create this affectionate ‘love letter to the rapidly disappearing” gay culture” in America’.
Todd offers some background thoughts on what Mister Pat has meant to him. He says “Back in 1984, I walked into my small-town gay bar for the first time — The Universal Fruit and Nut Company. There he was, glittering on the dancefloor. Wearing a teal feather boa, fedora and matching pantsuit, “Mister Pat” Pitsenbarger was busting old school moves straight out of Bob Fosse. I was seventeen, and Pat was a revelation.
“Years later, when I set out to write my autobiographical Edge Of Seventeen, I immediately thought of Mister Pat. I went back home to hunt him down, only to discover Pat had just suffered an aneurism and was temporarily unable to speak. But his lover David told me stories about how Pat was once the most fabulous hairdresser in Sandusky, Ohio, about his legendary drag performances and about how he used to shop at Kroger’s dressed as Carol Burnett – in 1967! This was a man who always had the courage to be himself, long before that was safe.
“The truth is, Mister Pat inspired me to write Edge Of Seventeen. I wrote a significant “Pat” character as my protagonist’s mentor, but midway through the shoot, the part got cut. I always knew my muse would return someday in my writing, and when he finally did many years later, I looked for Pat again only to learn he just passed away. Sadly, Pat’s legendary hand-beaded rhinestone gowns are all lost to time. Only a shoebox remains – filled with some tarnished jewellery and a half-smoked pack of Mores.
“SWAN SONG is a love letter to the rapidly disappearing “gay culture” of America. As it has become more acceptable to be queer, what used to be a thriving community is rapidly melting back into society. Thanks to assimilation and technology, small-town gay bars like The Universal Fruit and Nut Company are becoming extinct. SWAN SONG is dedicated to all the forgotten flaming florists and hairdressers who built the gay community and blazed the trail for the rights many of us cling to today. But, above all, for me this film is about learning that it’s never too late to live again”. – Todd Stephens
Winner: NewFest Film Festival 2021 Pride Audience Award
Official Selection SXSW Film Festival 2021 (World Premiere)
Official Selection Frameline Film Festival 2021
| Running time 105 mins approx. | Cert TBC
Country USA Language English | PECCADILLO PICTURES
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