Laverne Cox: Diddy's Transgendered Cast-Off Transforming Women on New VH1 Show

For transgendered actress Laverne Cox, the opportunity to compete on 'I Want to Work for Diddy' has been the greatest gift Sean "Diddy" Combs could have given her. Better even than winning the show.

Now, she's got her own VH1 series and not only is she starring in the makeover show, but she's creating and producing it as well.

"After 'I Want to Work for Diddy,' the network called me in for a spin-off,' she revealed to BV Newswire.

"To this day, people say, 'Hey, you're Laverne from 'I Want to Work for Diddy' and we think you should have won.' That's what people say to me at airports and at the library – that they were rooting for me and that's been the overwhelming response."

Instead of doing a reality series that focuses on her life as a transgendered woman, Cox thought bigger.

Enter 'TRANSform Me,' a eight-episode series that follows Cox and her two transgendered gal pals as they travel the country in their glam-ulance answering makeover 9-1-1 calls.

"The show is really a universal message about anyone who felt like they don't fit. It's about helping them be inspired so everyone feels good about themselves," the New Yorker revealed.

"I thought this would be the perfect thing, and the reality is transgendered people are not in the mainstream, and I conceptualized it being like the ultimate makeover."

"I have my own show that's a pretty big change [since doing the show], and I always wanted to impact people's lives and to have people say you inspire me."

Cox, who dabbles in acting and has appeared on 'Law and Order,' says it is "a huge responsibility" to showcase transgendered women in a positive light and not in a stereotypical way.

"There are moments when I'm overwhelmed because there hasn't been representation like this of transgendered women on television before, and I take it really seriously. I've never seen a black transgendered woman represented in a positive way on television. It makes me want to work harder and help my community more."

This season of 'Transform Me' is sure to entertain. On a recent episode, for example, where Cox is joined by Nina Poon and Jamie Clayton, the trio heads to Fort Lauderdale to transform a woman named Christina who was dumped by her boyfriend of six years on Valentine's Day.

"It sent her into a tailspin and feeling really bad about herself," Cox said. "She had a major breakdown on the show, and it was a huge challenge for us."

But no task is to daunting for this team.

"Different women provide different challenges, but the great thing is I've had a lot of challenges dressing myself and I feel like if I can make myself appear like I have things that I don't have. You can do that with anybody."

'Transform Me' airs Mondays at 10:30 p.m. EST.

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Men With Makeup

Men With Make-Up
Beautiful actresses and leggy supermodels aren't the only famous people putting on lipstick and wigs. Believe it or not, guys dressing up like gals are commonplace in Hollywood -- and way beyond. In mainstream culture, it has a historical context dating all the way back to the early years. But we won't go too far back in looking at how cross-dressing comics and tranny-ready thespians have permeated throughout the entertainment landscape. Join us for an introspective look at a bevy of boys who got all dolled up; from 'Tootsie' to Travolta and Wesley and RuPaul and everything in between.

Men With Makeup

Name: John Travolta
Profession: Actor
Gender Bender: In the glitzy movie remake of the Broadway musical, 'Hairspray,' John Travolta donned more than just a fat suit to play Edna Turnblad he put on a bouffant wig, make-up and an assortment of homely and outlandish dress. He shimmied and shook things up and was a sight for sore eyes for millions of movie goers who turned the movie into a box-office hit.
Claim to Fame: Travolta will always be remembered for his role as Tony Monero in the 1977 movie 'Saturday Night Fever,' which has become a ubiquitous symbol of the disco era. He also played Danny Zuko in the 1978 film, 'Grease.' Both projects were among the most commercially successful pictures of the decade and catapulted Travolta to international stardom.
Factoid: In 1975, Travolta landed his star-making role as Vinnie Barbarino in the TV sitcom 'Welcome Back, Kotter.'

Men With Makeup

Name: J. Alexander aka Miss J
Profession: Model/Television Personality/Runway Coach
Gender Bender: As a Bronx-bred teen, J. Alexander met the president of Elite Model Management--while dressed in drag--and was signed to the agency. Now, he continues to cross-dress or simply put on a pair of heels to teach new models how to walk.
Claim to Fame: Arguably the world's best runway coach, Tyra Banks did not forget that Miss J taught her how to walk in her modeling days and enlisted him to play runway coach/judge on her hit television show 'America's Next Top Model.'
Factoid: He cites his mother Mary Jenkins as the first person to introduce him to fashion.

Men With Makeup

Name: Amanda Lepore
Profession: Model/New York Nightclub Hostess/Singer/Entrepreneur
Gender Bender: At age seventeen, Lepore had a full sex-reassignment operation. She has undergone a great deal of plastic surgery but remains one of the most recognizable American transsexuals to date.
Claim to Fame: Lepore served as fashion photographer David LaChapelle's muse for MTV and Armani advertising campaigns and went on to become the face of Heatherette and M.A.C. cosmetics
Factoid: When she first moved to New York, the Cedar Grove, New Jersey native worked as a dominatrix.

Men With Makeup

Name: André Leon Talley
Profession: Editor-At-Large, 'Vogue' magazine
Gender Bender: Big, tall, bold and unafraid to push the envelope where men's fashion is concerned, he has been known to carry purses, wear kaftans, kilts and all sorts of androgynous drag to A-list events and fashion shows around the world.
Claim to Fame: He's known as 'Vogue' editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour's close friend and colleague. He's the Editor At Large of "the fashion industry bible."
Factoid: Though the character of Nigel in 'The Devil Wears Prada' has been rumored to be loosely based on Talley, it has been reported that Talley served as the inspiration for the character of Hollywood Montrose in the movie 'Mannequin.'

Men With Makeup

Name: Arsenio Hall
Profession: Actor/Comedian/Talk show host
Gender Bender: In addition to playing the Prince's best friend, Semmi, a reverend, and a fried chicken leg eating old fogey in a barber shop, Arsenio Hall also played a mannish woman in a bar in the comedy 'Coming to America.'
Claim to Fame: Hall reached his peak when he hosted a late-night talk show in the 90s the first time an African American hosted a late night network talk-show.
Factoid: In 1989, Hall released a comedic album called 'Large and In Charge,' under the moniker "Chunky A," who was supposed to be his overweight little brother.

Men With Makeup

Name: Boy George
Profession: Singer/Songwriter
Gender Bender: Influenced by David Bowie and Iggy Pop, Boy George's androgynous look made him a stand-out in his group Culture Club.
Claim to Fame: Culture Club's 1983 debut, 'Kissing To Be Clever,' included the #1 song 'Do You Really Want To Hurt Me.'
Factoid: Boy George, real name: George Alan O'Dowd, later confessed to being bisexual and dating his Culture Club drummer Jon Moss for whom he wrote a great deal of his hit songs for.

Men With Makeup

Name: Chiwetel Ejofor
Profession: Actor
Gender Bender: In the hit British comedy 'Kinky Boots,' Charles Price takes a last stab at saving his family's men's shoe business when he listens to a suggestion from Lola, a flamboyant drag queen and cabaret singer played by Ejiofor. Lola suggests that he make high heel shoes for drag queens.
Claim to Fame: Ejiofor, a noted London theatre actor, won a British Independent Film Award for his first leading film role in 2002's 'Dirty Pretty Things.' In 2008, he won the prestigious Laurence Olivier "Best Actor" Award for his role as 'Othello.'
Factoid: In 2006, Ejiofor and actor Clive Owen starred in two movies back-to-back, 'Inside Man' and 'Children of Men.'

Men With Makeup

Name: David Bowie
Profession: Singer
Gender Bender: In 1972, Bowie explored an androgynous persona, taking on the character "Ziggy Stardust" and dressing in wild outfits with bright red hair. In a 1976 interview with 'Playboy,' he declared he was bisexual, only to distance himself from the comments for next twenty years.
Claim to Fame: The British rocker (real name: David Robert Jones) achieved success in America with the song 'Fame' and his 'Young Americans' album.
Factoid: Bowie is married to supermodel, Iman.

Men With Makeup

Name: Divine
Profession: Actor/ Cult Icon
Gender Bender: In the 1970s, Harris Glenn Milstead first starred as Divine in a number of New York City theater productions, including Tom Eyen's classic camp women's prison drama, 'Women Behind Bars,' which became a major off-Broadway hit in 1976. With his big bodacious body and body of work, no one did campy drag the way he did.
Claim to Fame: Divine's big exposure came in the form of memorable roles in John Waters' films such as 'Polyester' and 'Hairspray.'
Factoid: In 1988, Divine was cast as two characters in the FOX prime-time series 'Married...With Children.' He passed away in March 1988 -- the autopsy found he had died in his sleep of heart failure, or an enlarged heart brought on by sleep apnea. He was 42.

Men With Makeup