Christine Jorgensen B

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CHRISTINE JORGENSEN b. May 30, 1926 d. May 3, 1989 TRANSGENDER PIONEER “Nature made a mistake, which I have had corrected.” Jorgensen became one of the first to combine Christine Jorgensen was the first nationally known transgender American. She hormone therapy with gender used her fame to speak out on behalf of transgender people. reassignment surgery. Born George Jorgensen Jr. and raised in the Bronx, she described herself as a “frail, tow-headed, introverted little boy who ran from fistfights and rough-and-tumble games.” In 1945, after graduating high school, Jorgensen was drafted into the Army. Jorgensen researched gender reassignment surgery. While visiting Copenhagen, she met Dr. Christian Hamburger, an endocrinologist and specialist in rehabilitative hormonal therapy. With Hamburger’s help, Jorgensen became one of the first to combine hormone therapy with gender reassignment surgery. She chose the name Christine to honor Dr. Hamburger. In 1952, based on an intercepted letter to her parents describing her transformation, the New York Daily News ran the headline “Ex-GI Becomes Blonde Beauty.” The media incorrectly called Jorgensen the first person to undergo the surgery, which had been performed since the late 1920’s in Europe. She returned to New York City and used her fame to advocate for transsexual and transgender people. Jorgensen continued her transition by having a vaginoplasty. In 1959, she became engaged to Howard Knox. They tried to wed, but the marriage license was rejected because Jorgensen was legally a male. The media reported the story, Knox lost his job, and the relationship ended. In the 1970’s and 1980’s, Jorgensen spoke at universities across the nation about her life. She became a singer and actress performing in Las Vegas, New York City and Hollywood. Jorgensen appeared in the documentary “Paradise Not For Sale” (1984) and was PRESS © ASSOCIATED the focus of “The Christine Jorgensen Story” (1970). Jorgensen authored “Christine Jorgensen: A Personal Biography” (1967). www.lgbtHistoryMonth.com Copyright © 2012 – A Project of Equality Forum.

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Cold War Beginnings
GROWTH AND TURMOIL, 1948-1977 Cold War Beginnings Resource: Life Story: Christine Jorgensen (1926-1989) Christine Jorgensen was born on May 30, 1926, in the Bronx, New York. She was assigned male at birth, but always felt like a girl. She wanted to wear girls’ clothes and play with girls’ toys. As a teenager, she developed crushes on boys and struggled to understand her own feelings. After she graduated from high school in 1945, Christine was drafted by the U.S. Army. Christine served as a military clerical worker for a year. After World War II ended, Christine pursued a career in photography. In her free time, she read about medical procedures to help people who felt that their gender or sexual identity did not align with society’s expectations. In 1950, she traveled to Denmark for a series of surgeries and hormone treatments that transformed her body into that of a woman. The process took nearly two years. She chose the name Christine in honor of her surgeon, Dr. Christian Hamburger. Christine intended for her transition to remain private. However, an unidentiﬁed person who knew about the procedures she had contacted the press. On December 1, 1952, the New York Daily News published photographs of Christine before and after her transition with the headline “Ex-GI Becomes Blonde Beauty: Operations Transform Bronx Youth.” Within days, Christine Jorgensen was both a national and international celebrity. When she returned to the United States in 1953, Christine arranged with the press to make her arrival a public spectacle. Hundreds of reporters greeted her at the airport in New York City.
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