As the psychedelic San Francisco of the ’60s began evolving into the gay San Francisco of the ’70s, The Cockettes, a flamboyant ensemble of hippies (gay men, women, and babies) decked themselves out in gender-bending drag and tons of glitter for a series of legendary midnight musicals at the Palace Theater in North Beach.

With titles like “Tinsel Tarts in a Hot Coma” and “Pearls over Shanghai,” these all-singing, all-dancing extravaganzas featured elaborate costumes, rebellious sexuality, and exuberant chaos. In their 2½ year existence, The Cockettes created 20 shows, and were featured in 4 films. They created a unique burst of cultural experimentation and artistic outrageousness that continues to influence the worlds of theater, music, fashion, gay politics and spirituality, and urban club life.