In the
’90s, Jahna Steele was one of Vegas’s most
celebrated topless performers. Did being outed as
transgender contribute to her demise?
Like many
beautiful women, Jahna Steele struggled with getting older.
By her early 30s the platinum-blond singer and dancer
had been a Vegas sensation, headlining “Crazy
Girls,” the city’s über-straight topless
revue, before being outed as transgender by the tabloid show
A Current Affair. After that Steele toured nightclubs
and appeared regularly on national talk shows like
Montel. But at 49, she was dead.
Steele passed
away January 24 from as yet undetermined causes, according
to the Clark County, Nev., coroner. Her former best friend,
“La Cage” star Frank Marino [see page
42], says, “I heard it was prescription
medication. It’s really Anna Nicole, Marilyn Monroe
relived.”
After having
sex-reassignment surgery in her early 20s, Steele fled her
hometown of San Antonio for Vegas. She gained a reputation
on the Sin City nightclub scene as a talented
performer who also completely “passed.”
“My
producer not only had “La Cage” but
“Crazy Girls,” and he was looking for a
singer,” Marino recalls. “I recommended
Jahna.” During auditions, Marino’s
producer said, “ ‘If she’s as good as
you say, that I can’t tell which one is your
friend, I’ll hire her.’ For many years Jahna
was the star of “Crazy Girls,” and the
rest is history.”
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