Miss Fame
American model, makeup artist, and drag queen From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Miss Fame (born March 30, 1985)[1] is the stage name of Kurtis Frank Dam-Mikkelsen,[2] a gender fluid[3] American model, makeup artist, drag queen, recording artist and reality television personality best known as a contestant on season 7 of RuPaul's Drag Race. After appearing on the show, Dam-Mikkelsen as Miss Fame launched a music career, releasing their debut single, "Rubber Doll" on April 28, 2015. Their debut album, Beauty Marked, was released on June 9, 2015.[4] Miss Fame appeared in numerous fashion publications.
Miss Fame | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Fame at the Berlinale 2017 | |
| Born | Kurtis Frank Dam-Mikkelsen March 30, 1985 Templeton, California, U.S. |
| Occupations | |
| Years active | 2011–present |
| Spouse | Patrick Berschy (m. 2013) |
| Musical career | |
| Genres |
|
| Labels | Sidecar Records |
| Website | missfamenyc |
Career
Summarize
Perspective
Dam-Mikkelsen worked as a male editorial model in California before moving to New York in 2011, following the advice of fashion photographer Mike Ruiz. They then started working as a makeup artist under industry icon Pat McGrath while building a celebrity clientele. At the same time they started modeling and performing in drag as "Miss Fame".[5]
Miss Fame was noticed by photographer Mary McCartney who featured them in her book Devoted. They have also appeared in Half-Drag, a photo series by Leland Bobbé which attracted international attention and were featured in Vogue Italia.[6] Miss Fame was also photographed for Gorgeous, a project by photographers Rob Lebow and Masha Kupets that involved Armen Ra, Candis Cayne, and Tammie Brown.[7] Dam-Mikkelsen works as a celebrity makeup artist in New York City, and have worked on models and celebrities including Marc Jacobs, Ève Salvail, Snooki and JWoww, Martha Wash, Wendy Williams, and Michael Urie.[8]
On December 7, 2014, during the "Ru-Veal" of the seventh season of RuPaul's Drag Race, Miss Fame was the first queen announced to be a contestant on the show.[9] They were eliminated in the ninth episode, "Divine Inspiration," placing their seventh overall.[10] Following their elimination, they released the music video for "Rubber Doll", which was the first single from their debut album, Beauty Marked.[11] The album was released June 9, 2015, and featured appearances from fellow Drag Race contestants Alaska Thunderfuck and Violet Chachki.[4]
In 2016, Miss Fame signed with IMG models Paris.[12]
Miss Fame has been celebrated for their high-fashion editorial work and collaborations with world-renowned photographers like Steven Klein, Giampaolo Sgura, Paola Kudacki, Armin Morbach, Ali Mahdavi, and others. Miss Fame has been featured in publications including Vogue Germany, Vogue Portugal, Vogue Paris,[13] Vogue Japan, CR Fashion Book, PAPER,[14] V Magazine,[15] LOVE, CANDY, Tush, OUT, ELLE, and others.
They contributed to the compilation album Christmas Queens 3 in 2017.[16]
In September 2018, Miss Fame performed as a background dancer behind Christina Aguilera for Opening Ceremony's Spring 2019 collection, with other Drag Race alumni.[17] They released their own makeup line called "The Fetish of Fashion" later in October.[18]
In September 2022, Pinned into a Dress, a documentary about Kurtis' life premiered at the Venice International Film Festival. The short-film highlights Kurtis journey and breakthrough in fashion, despite their trauma and addiction, growing up in a broken family. Opening the Settimana Internazionale della Critica the documentary was co-directed by Gianluca Matarrese and Guillaume Thomas.[19]
Early and personal life
Dam-Mikkelsen was born to Dolly Silveira[20] in San Luis Obispo, California.[5] They have also stated that they were raised by their grandmother, Gloria, as her own child.[21] Kurtis lives with their husband Patrick Bertschy and their pet dachshunds, Mina and Shaya.[22]
In 2020, Kurtis moved to Zürich, Switzerland, with their husband.[23]
Discography
Albums
Singles
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Rubber Doll"[26] | 2015 | Beauty Marked |
| "InstaFame"[27] | ||
| "I Run the Runway" (with Violet Chachki) [28] |
2016 |
Other appearances
| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Drag Race Theme"[29] | 2015 | RuPaul | RuPaul Presents: CoverGurlz2 |
| "Toyland"[30] | Various Artists | Christmas Queens | |
| "Poo" | 2016 | Lucian Piane, Pearl, Violet Chachki | RuPaul's Drag Race: The Rusical |
| "Chicken" | Alaska Thunderfuck | Poundcake | |
| "Christmas Waltz" | 2017 | N/A | Christmas Queens 3 |
Filmography
Film
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Snooki & Jwoww | Themself | Episode: "What a Drag!" | [33] |
| 2015 | RuPaul's Drag Race | Themself (Contestant) | Season 7 – Placed 7th | [34] |
| 2021 | Germany's Next Topmodel | Themself (Guest Judge) | Season 16 – Episode 11 | [35] |
Web series
Music videos
Music video appearances
| Title | Year | Director | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Save the Queen" (Garek) |
2012 | Unknown | [42] |
| "Supermodel (You Better Work)" (2013 Edit) (RuPaul) |
2013 | Marco Ovando | [43] |
| "Go All Night" (Gorgon City featuring Jennifer Hudson) |
2014 | Roboshobo | [44] |
| "Opulence" (Brooke Candy) |
2014 | Steven Klein | [45] |
| "My Animal" (Garek) |
2015 | Mike Ruiz | [46] |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | The WOWIE Awards | Best Beauty Guru Award (The Painted Award) | Themself | Nominated | [47][48] |
See also
References
External links
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