Itinerary: Such a Drag

Who knows when the first man decided he looked fabulous in a dress. Maybe it was one of the actors in Shakespeare’s Globe Theater.

The term “drag” does, apparently, come out of the theater, meaning women’s clothing worn by a male actor. The phrase first started to appear around 1870 and was popularized by a “notorious impersonation case,” according to a slang dictionary published in 1873. Even into the 1920s, when Mae West used drag queens in her live shows, drag was something of a scandal.

You’d think the men-in-dresses thrill would be over by now. But some of the goings-on around town this weekend prove otherwise.

Thursday

At the Stonewall Gourmet Coffeehouse (8717 Santa Monica Blvd., West Hollywood. 8:30 p.m. [310] 659-8009), bingo has grabbed hold of a whole new generation. Drag queen Belle-Aire brings bingo out of the Catholic Church basement and into the West Hollywood night life with her sarcastic jokes and goofy prizes. For $1 a card, it’s maybe the cheapest night out in L.A. Play all night long. Just don’t think you’re going to get rich; all the proceeds go to charity.

Friday

Drag started in the theater and it’s still going strong there. “Jackie Beat Is . . . a Whole Lotta Love” runs at the Zephyr Theatre (7456 Melrose Ave. Thursday and Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 9 and 11 p.m. $25. [323] 650-0831) through April 30.

Josef Cannon-Terry’s musical comedy “The Life of a Queen Can Be Such a Drag” is set on the day of a drag queen’s 2,000th performance--and his father’s funeral. It’s running indefinitely at Masquers Cabaret (8334 W. 3rd St., L.A. Friday, 7:30 p.m. $10. [323] 653-4848).

Saturday

Robin Williams, Patrick Swayze and even Terrence Stamp have tried it on film. But cross-dressing has never been so divine as in Billy Wilder’s classic “Some Like It Hot” (1959). Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon witness a gangland massacre and go into hiding with an all-girl dance band. Things get complicated when Curtis falls for the band’s singer, played by Marilyn Monroe.

As if the film weren’t enough, it’s showing at the swellegant Orpheum Theatre (842 S. Broadway, downtown L.A. Parking available in a lot next to the theater) with a live vaudeville-style stage show before the screening. Burlesque diva Dixie Evans, now 74, will appear, along with the band Cafe R&B;, striptease performers from the Velvet Hammer Revue, bullwhip artist Brian Chic, the Cumulus Dancers and emcee Rube Ruben. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. with the movie at 9 p.m. $15. $12 for Marilyn Monroe look-alikes. (323) 655-TKTS. Information: (213) 239-0949.

Sunday

For a little history, rent the video “Stonewall” (1995), a fictionalized version of the night the drag queens fought back during a police raid of a Greenwich Village drag bar, effectively launching the gay rights movement. The documentary “Paris Is Burning” (1990) offers some insight into New York’s outlandish drag balls of the vogueing era.

Other fun cross-dressing movies: Edouard Molinaro’s “La Cage aux Folles” (1978), remade by Mike Nichols as “The Birdcage”; the Australian charmer “The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert” (1994), written and directed by Stephan Elliott; and “Tootsie” (1982) directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Dustin Hoffman.