Jennifer Leitham Can Swing Like Nobody's Business; Also, She Was Born a Man
By Sean J. O'Connell Mon., Jul. 16 2012 at 4:30 AM
http://blogs.laweekly.com/westcoastsound/2012/07/jennifer_leitham_i_stand_corrected_film_transgender.phpAlmost thirty years ago jazz bassist John Leitham moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career in music. Two decades later he underwent gender reassignment surgery to become Jennifer Leitham. Tonight, as part of the Outfest Film Festival, Leitham presents a documentary about her decision entitled I Stand Corrected.
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In his late 40s, following a divorce from his wife, John Leitham pursued the physical change he had always desired. He then learned that many of those who had regularly hired John were uncomfortable sharing the stage with Jennifer.
"My art is a lot better but my career has suffered for it," says Leitham. "I can't rely on waiting for the phone to ring anymore. I have to try pretty hard. Unfortunately in the jazz world, [gender] is way too relevant. It comes from jazz coming out of the big band, swing era. There is still a lot of that behavior amongst musicians, locker room type stuff."
