And to be different is great. You don't want to be the same.

May I say, if you were suddenly put into a woman's body, wouldn't you be slightly interested in your breasts, and why people look at certain parts of you, and why certain parts move like they do?

My way was not to be the petite, gorgeous, little cheerleader. My way of getting by was making people laugh.

Onstage, I was never the ingenue.

Royal Young has accomplished a rare feat in his fresh and riveting debut: he manages to recount his fascinating youth and unconventional family with a mixture of humor, scathing honesty and tenderness. Much more than simply a book about a kid who dreams of stardom, Fame Shark is a thoughtful, hilarious and moving love letter to his family and the Lower East Side of New York City.

It was only when I moved to New York that I realized tall is good.

I literally felt like a freak, which is another aspect of the role of Sally that I relate to: total outsider.