Tula is back in the public eye

[Aleca]

I noticed last month that Tula, real Caroline Cossey is back in the news after 23 years. For those of you who don't know who she is you can google her information. All of us transgender / crossdressing individuals in our 40's and older regarded her as a huge role model back in the 19 eighties and early nineties. She was way ahead of her time and started to get heavily into crossdressing just because of her. Her beauty was inspiring. Well, I think with Caitlyn Jenner introducing herself to the world that also inspired Caroline to do an interview, first in two decades, with Playboy. She also joined up on Facebook and you can see what she looks like today. Quite older, still has a figure though maybe a bit too much time in the sun. Check her out.

[TrishaTX]

Thanks I didn't know that...good information

[Jenniferathome]

Well, I had to look her up. I have never heard of her so, "All of us transgender / crossdressing individuals in our 40's and older regarded her as a huge role model..." is not quite accurate. Of particular note is that by age 17, she was on hormones and living full time as a woman. She also has an XXXY chromosome. I've never heard of that.

I think it is far easier for those who are young to transition from M2F. The effects of testosterone are not complete. Arresting that hormone prevents the square jaw and adams apple protrusion, as an example. Breast augmentation is something anyone can buy.

[Gretchen_To_Be]

I definitely regarded her as a role model! She was an amazingly beautiful example of what was possible and I found her completely captivating. I recall furtively reading her book "My Story" in bookstores 20+ years ago. I was too embarrassed to purchase it. She'll always be special to me as I consider her story to be formative in my younger years.

[UNDERDRESSER]

I remember her modelling work for Life brand motorcycle helmets. She posed in motorcycle "leathers" which were in fact, nothing more than bodypaint and glued on zippers. You can find them if you search.

[sometimes_miss]

The wikipedia page is different from what I remembered, though not by much. It was 35 years ago, it all came out after her appearance in the James Bond film 'For your eyes only'. She got an offer to appear in OUI magazine and then about the same time the whole TS thing became known. I still have that copy of OUI somewhere. I didn't remember anything about a genetic xxxy thing, either, nor did I remember her family being supportive; the articles I remember were about her having to leave the UK in order to stay under the radar and avoid telling her family, and working as a dancer in France while saving for her HRT and eventual surgery. I think she wound up marrying someone and living in Canada. She would sporadically appear in the news once in a while, but it was always when some other TG/TS story was hot.

[Claire Cook]

I'm glad to see this. Caroline was a true pioneer and remains both a role model and a strong advocate for transgenders.

[Vickie_CDTV]

Tula was born XXXY, she did interviews on various talk shows back in the day and discussed that. If you look on YouTube and search for "Caroline Cossy" you can find her various appearances on talk shows back in the 1980s and 1990s. I have a Maury Povich show (yes that show believe it or not) from 1991 where she discussed her genetics and her marriage that isn't up on YouTube, maybe I will upload it at some point.

[chinabrown]

Tula was outed after being in the James Bond movie.

http://m.imdb.com/name/nm0876302/bio

She was cast in the 1981 James Bond movie "For Your Eyes Only", credited only as "Girl At Pool". Major scandal erupted following the release of "For Your Eyes Only" when she was outed as a transsexual by the Sunday tabloid, "The News Of The World".

Caroline Cossey (whose professional name is Tula) was born on August 31, 1954 in Brooke, England, United Kingdom, with male sex organs, under the name Barry Cossey. Throughout her teenage years, even though anatomically she was a male, she was extremely feminine, tall, very thin, and often was mistaken for being female (even before transitioning). Later tests would prove that her chromosomes were in fact XXXY, which make her genetic makeup sexually ambiguous...in other words her genetics are more female than male,

[Beverley Sims]

I think the Christine Jorgensen's of the world had it tough, it seems it was worse then.

Caitlyn Jenner is opening up a new Pandora's box for us to examine.

Caroline Cossey did well with the James bond movie and that helped with her acceptance.