The Lady Chablis, also known as The Grand Empress and The Doll, was an American actress, author, and transgender club performer. Through exposure in the bestselling nonfiction book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, and its 1997 film adaptation, she became one of the first trans performers to be introduced to a wide audience.
The Lady Chablis, 1996
A poster in memoriam of The Lady Chablis on the Jefferson Street wall of Club One. It includes a censored version of her catchphrase, which she uses in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: "Two tears in a bucket, motherfuck it."
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is a non-fiction novel by John Berendt. The book, Berendt's first, was published on January 10, 1994, and follows the story of Jim Williams, an antiques dealer on trial for the shooting death of Danny Hansford. Subtitled A Savannah Story, with an initial printing of 25,000 copies, the book became a New York Times Best-Seller for 216 weeks following its debut and remains one of the longest-standing New York Times Best-Sellers.
The cover of the 1994 book, which features the Bird Girl sculpture.
Mercer House. The alleged murder of Danny Hansford occurred in Williams' study – the bottom left room in this photograph. The house is now known as the Mercer Williams House Museum
