Once First Now Last
First and Last Wives Club in Texas is full of women who were once married and vow never to be again, not because of bitterness or male bashing but for reasons ranging from “switching teams” (lesbianism) or for their own personal quests.
“The First Wives Club” was a 1996 movie about Hollywood trophy wives who take husbands away from the original wives.
But this organization doesn’t lament what went bad in their marriage, but instead celebrate their life now.
“We designed the name because in forming our group we all realized that we had at one time all been married to one loser or another,” said Owner “Miss Lace.” “We are predominantly lesbian, although some of my founding lifers, heterosexual persuasion.”
The club participates in activities all over the city like the recent Pride Parade and Dykes On Bikes.
Even the straight ones march in the gay pride parades.
The club’s motto is “If you’ve ever been a first wife, you know you’ll be the last” and they have a reunion every year to update each other on what everyone is doing in their lives.
The rest of the year there are parties and entertainment which are listed on firstandlastwivesclub.com. On the site you can also buy opinionated t-shirts.
The first show the club ever participated in was in 2001, an extravagant affair in Sydney, Australia.
Like a girl’s tree house, they even have their own terminology, like “lifer,” a member who intends to attend every event until she dies and “fence girl” – a straight girl who all the women in the club think will fall off the proverbial fence at any minute and cross over.
In the photos on the group’s website you can see a lot of “lipstick lesbians,” traditionally feminine gay women. In American films lesbians are often portrayed according to the lipstick lesbian stereotype like “The L Word” on Showtime.
As with gay men, lesbian culture includes elements both from the larger gay culture and ones that are more closely specific to the lesbian community.
“When you get a divorce you go through a crazy period,” says Jackie Joseph, one straight wives’ club president in Hollywood specifically for celebrity wives.
Following her divorce, Joseph became chair of the Screen Actors’ Guild, TV Actors Union, and was made director or a homeless shelter in Redondo Beach.
For more information on the First and Last Wives Club, call 972-939-9106.
