Darcelle XV Obituary

Darcelle XV was the stage name of Walter W. Cole, a drag queen, entertainer and cabaret owner and operator in Portland, Oregon, United States.

Guinness World Records certified him as the oldest drag queen performer in 2016, with a career as an entertainer spanning 57 years at the time of his death.

Darcelle XV first purchased a coffeehouse called Caffe Espresso, which later relocated and expanded to include a basement jazz club called Studio A. In 1967, he purchased a tavern in southwest Portland which became Darcelle XV Showplace.

Cole who had an interest in acting and had worked at Portland Civic Theatre developed his alter ego Darcelle and came out as gay. The name Darcelle honours French actress and singer, Denise and singer, Denise Darcel.

In 2021 a documentary called Maisie was released. This featured English drag artiste, David Raven who works under the name of Maisie Trollette. He is the oldest UK drag artiste still working, turning 85 in 2021. At Legends in Brighton, Maisie met Darcelle after Raven had earlier met him at the Brighton Hotel.