Margaret "Maggie" Olwen McCorkle (February 20, 1924 - October 15, 2005) was a
performing artist, she had "glamour days" from the early 50's Supper Club,
she was dancer, summerstock actress, she had also a modeling career. A
Cherry Grove drag queen named Panzi (aka Thom Hansen) said "The Grove without Maggie is like Paris without the Eiffel tower. Maggie was the heart and soul of Cherry
Grove." Panzi, who shared drinks with Maggie on Panzi's 21st birthday,
closed with "Maggie is like a Saint in my heart". The life of this
person has been researched by Esther Newton for her essay: "Cherry
Grove, Fire Island", published by Duke University Press.
Maggie graduated from the U. of Kentucky with a BA in Drama and was chosen by a theater company in Cambridge Massachusetts for summer stock at Plymouth Beach.
She joined their year-round company as their character ingénue and year-round stock at Harvard Square.
She had several affairs there and her Phys. Ed. Teacher from the U. of Kentucky came to visit.
She realized she was becoming very actively gay and didn't know what to do about it so
she decided to move to New York City. She arrived by bus and landed in the middle of the West 40s with $20 and a dime.
She lived with four Broadway gypsies and they took care of her. She took an evening job at CARE downtown so
she could audition during the day. She immediately had an affair with a woman at CARE and learned about New York's gay bars.
She left CARE after a few months and got a night job teaching dancing at Arthur Murray's home studio and doing some of their commercials.
She appeared in Julius
Monk's cabaret revues and The Blue Angel. For many years, Maggie starred
in musicals at Cherry Grove, Fire Island, while working in the concert
management field. In addition, she protested the overbuilding of homes
on Fire Island, battled organizations intent on destroying beaches and
bays and took her protests to Washington. She was not to be dealt with
lightly. She was a witty, loving, thoughtful, and devoted friend who
brought joy to many.
McCorkle died October 15, 2005 after a brief illness.
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