Join the Library and the Mattachine Societ y of Washington\, D.C. for a premiere screening of Lou's Legacy: A Rep orter's Life at the Washington Blade\, a new documentary film from Em my-nominated DC filmmaker Patrick Sammon\, about legendary Blade reporter Lou Chibbaro Jr. and DC drag icon Donnell Robinson &ndash\; also known as Ella Fitzgerald. The documentary follows Lou as he works on a sto ry about "Ella's" triumphant return to the Capital PRIDE stage after three years away because of Covid. Donnell and Lou reflect on their careers and discuss the ongoing backlash against the LGBTQ community\, including laws targeting drag performers. Check out this sneak preview of the 30-minute film before its June broadcast on WETA and MPT. After the screening\, ther e will be a panel discussion moderated by DC journalist Rebekah Robinson.< /p>\n
\; \;
\nLynne Brown is the publisher and co-owner of the Washington Blade< /em>. Founded in 1969\, it&rsquo\;s the nation&rsquo\;s oldest and most ac claimed LGBTQ news publication. Brown is a co-founder and owner of B rown Naff Pitts Omnimedia\, which has published the Blade since 2 009. The company also owns ancillary businesses\, including the Los Angeles Blade. She also is a million-dollar sales executive with a long history in niche market publications. Brown sits on the executive c ommittee of National LGBTQ Newspaper Association and represents the two Bl ades in the News Is Out Collaborative.    \;
\nHer current non-profit work is focused on the Washington Blade Foundation \, which is dedicated to preserving the newspaper&rsquo\;s archive. In par tnership with the DC Public Library\, digitalization of the archives has b een completed and is available to the public for free. \;
\nIn 2011\, Chibba ro became the first reporter from the LGBTQ press to be inducted into the Society of Professional Journalists DC Professional Chapter's Hall o f Fame\, which recognizes journalists of distinction who have worked in th e news business for 25 years or longer. \;
\nDonne ll Robinson &ndash\; better known as &ldquo\;Ella Fitzgerald&rdquo\; to hi s fans &ndash\; is a legend in DC&rsquo\;s LGBTQ community who ha s been entertaining audiences for nearly 50 years. Known as a class clown in his native Warrenton\, Virginia\, Robinson won his first drag contest i n a high school talent show by playing &ldquo\;Geraldine&rdquo\; - comedia n Flip Wilson&rsquo\;s wildly popular television character. Soon after hig h school\, Donnell moved to the DC area and never looked back. As emcee an d host for forty years of the drag extravaganzas at Ziegfeld&rsquo\;s Show Bar\, Ella Fitzgerald became the &ldquo\;doyenne of Washington drag queen s\,&rdquo\; proclaimed the Washington Post. Today\, Donnell is mo stly retired from performing drag while continuing to work as a hairdresse r and makeup artist. \;
\nRebekah Robinson is a board member of the DC chapter of NLGJA: The National Association of LGBT Q+ Journalists and associate producer for TransLash Media's investigative podcast The Anti-Trans Hate Machine: A Plot Against Equality. She previously worked as a reporter and producer at Coda Story\, a global non -profit newsroom. A trilingual\, multimedia storyteller\, Robinson h as an undergraduate degree from the University of Toronto and a Master&rsq uo\;s in journalism from Columbia University. \; \;
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The Washington Blade has been Washingt
on DC's principal lesbian\, gay\, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) newspape
r since its first issue in October 1969. It began as a monthly news sheet
and a replacement for the Mattachine Society of Washington's newsletter of
the 1950s and early 1960s. The Blade quickly grew\, adding image
s and additional pages\, and expanding its run to twice a month\, and then
weekly. The Blade covered current events from an LGBT perspectiv
e as well as LGBT life in DC and the social and political progress of the
gay rights movement. The People's Archive at DC Public Library is the home of The
Washington Blade Collection\, which contains digitized editio
ns of the historic independent newspaper from 1969 to 1989 and is presente
d in partnership with the Washington Blade.