Lee Brewster
Lee G. Brewster (1943 - 2000) was a well-known gay and transgender advocate, activist, merchant, and event promoter. Lee was best known in the TG community as the proprietor of Lee's Mardi Gras Boutque, which is regarded as the world's first open-to-the-public TG specialty shop.
Lee was active with the New York chapter of the Mattachine Society, one of the world's first gay advocacy groups.
Lee's DBA, "Lee's Mardi Gras Enterprizes", was named after a recurring annual excursion ("a vacation, not a convention") to New Orleans for the Mardi Gras celebration.
Lee was co-founder of the Queens Liberation Front (QLF), one of the first transgender advocacy organizations. QLF was highly involved in the repealing of New York City's anti-crossdressing laws in the early 1970s.
Lee also founded Queens Publications, publisher of Drag Magazine, beginning in 1973, and The Crossdresser, first published in 1975.
Lee died of cancer in May of 2000 at age 57.
