Leslie Cochran
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Leslie Cochran (born as Albert Leslie Cochran[1][2] on June 24, 1951) is an American vagrant cross-dresser and arguably the most locally famous street person, according to local media sources, in Austin, Texas. He is an outspoken critic of police treatment of the homeless in the downtown Austin area. Many consider him to be the epitome of the 'Keep Austin Weird' campaign, as demonstrated by his two time run for mayor as well as numerous articles in The Austin Chronicle and local news stations.
Prior to moving to Austin Leslie lived in the Northwest and at one time worked as a truck driver frequently traveling up and down the West coast. Leslie has told the Austin American-Statesman that he was briefly married in 1985 or 1986. He said he grew up south of Miami, briefly attended University of Florida on a football scholarship, spent nine months in the Naval Reserve in 1974 and 1975, worked for Safeway grocery stores in Seattle, skinned road-kill in Colorado and tanned the hides, worked as a disc jockey near Steamboat Springs, Colo., lived in a converted bookmobile in Shreveport, La., Tampa, Fla., and Atlanta, and then took a year to ride a three-wheeled bicycle to Austin in January 1996.[1]
Leslie hangs out around 6th Street, usually around 6th and Congress during business hours. He can also often be found at Bouldin Creek Coffeehouse during late afternoons and early evenings. He is most frequently seen wearing women's clothing; his most popular attire is a leopard thong and high-heeled shoes. Leslie prefers to be known as a man.[3]
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[edit] Austin mayoral election
In 2000, Leslie ran for mayor against the incumbent Kirk Watson and finished second. His popularity waned in the 2003 election because of his platform to house the homeless in tipis.
In 2004, he challenged Jennifer Gale (a homeless transgendered individual and a fellow mayoral candidate) to a debate at the University of Texas student union on the topic of who should best represent the homeless. Gale declined to participate unless given $50 of food from the Wendy's restaurant inside the union. "Dunlavy", the event organizer, declined.
[edit] Election results
- 2,755 votes - 7.75%
- 2,107 votes - 3.52%
- 1,113 votes - 1.9%
[edit] Leslie Dress-Up Magnet
In 2006, Jimmy Haddox, co-owner of Wet Hair Salon, created the "Leslie Dress-Up Magnet," which contains an 8-inch likeness of Cochran along with several interchangeable magnetic outfits. Several Austin businesses sell the magnets, and Cochran himself receives 15% of the sales. Haddox predicted sales would exceed 10,000 by the end of 2006.[4][5]
[edit] References
- ^ a b The trouble with Leslie, Austin American-Statesman, May 25, 1999
- ^ Downtown fixture 'Leslie' arrested for public camping, Austin American-Statesman, June 18, 1999
- ^ Clark-Madison, Mike (May 28, 2004). "Austin @ Large". The Austin Chronicle. http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/column?oid=oid:212988. Retrieved on 2007-10-16.
- ^ http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/12/03/3kelso.html
- ^ http://www.dfw.com/mld/startelegram/news/state/16249065.htm
- Clark-Madison, Mike (March 14, 2003). "A Little Respect: All hail Leslie Cochran, Austin's queen of political soul". Austin at Large (Austin Chronicle). http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2003-03-14/pols_atlarge.html. Retrieved on 2006-04-17.
- Cinelli, Carla (2004). "Homeless Cross-Dresser - 'Leslie - The Queen of Austin'". Photogallery. Cinelli, Carla. http://www.carlacinelli.com/Homeless_cross-dresser/. Retrieved on 2006-04-17.
[edit] External links
- Leslie Cochran at MySpace
- Leslie at Yelp
