UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – As part of National Coming Out Week, the LGBTQA Student Resource Center, a unit of Student Affairs, is bringing Ian Harvie and Larry Kramer to campus.
Ian Harvie, a transgender actor, comedian and writer is giving a talk titled, “Everyone is a Little Bit Trans [gender] at 7 p.m. Oct. 12, in the HUB Freeman Auditorium on the University Park campus. A meet and greet will follow the talk.
At 7 p.m. Oct. 13 in the HUB Alumni Hall Larry Kramer, a playwright, author, public health advocate, and AIDS and LGBT rights activist will present, “An Evening with Larry Kramer.” A book signing will take place prior to the talk at 6:30 p.m. in 129A HUB.
Harvie is best known as “Dale” on the Amazon original series "Transparent." He has also appeared on Comedy Central’s The "Nightly Show" with Larry Wilmore, CNN’s "Newsroom with Brooke Baldwin," PBS’s "Roadtrip Nation" and ABC’s "Comics Unleashed."
Born female, Harvie knew he was transgender at an early age, but didn't have a language for his gender identity at the time; he came out as queer at 19 and as transgender at 32. It was then that Harvie began his standup comedy career. In 2006, Harvie moved to the West Coast, caught the eye of renowned comedian, Margaret Cho and began opening for her at venues around the world.
He went on to produce and appear in his own self-titled, critically lauded, “The Ian Harvie Show,” which has been running since 2007 at famed music and comedy club, Largo in Los Angeles.
Kramer began a relentless campaign to raise awareness about AIDS in the early 1980s. He co-founded the Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC), the world’s first organization providing patient services for those living with AIDS. He also started AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP), which became known as one of the most successful grassroots organizations in the history of activism.
Kramer wrote the 1978 novel "Faggots," which was controversial for its satirical and confrontational approach to the promiscuity of urban gay men. In 1985, his play "The Normal Heart" was originally produced in The Public Theater in New York. In 2011, a new Broadway production of the play won a Tony for best revival of a play. In 2014, Kramer received an Emmy for the HBO movie version of "The Normal Heart."
The first volume of Kramer’s novel "The American People" was published in 2015.
Harvie’s talk is sponsored by the LGBTQA Student Resource Center with funding from the University Park Allocation Committee (UPAC). Kramer’s talk is sponsored by the LGBTQA Student Resource Center, the Department of Women's Gender and Sexuality Studies, the Department of English and the Commission on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Equity.