Recently it came to my attention that I'm on Wikipedia.
Right now it's an empty page. No Surprise there since not many people know "my story." So I figured I'd sit down and write a few things I experienced during my past 35 years that might be of interest to others.
Here is the first draft. Please feel free to play "editor" and fix anything you feel needs fixing.
Here is the first draft to be posted on Wikipedia.
Amnesia Sparkles (born April 19th, 1979) is the alter ego of artist, photographer, and writer, Adrian L. Acosta. Amnesia made her Television debut on the first season of the popular show American Idol making her the first crossdresser on the show. She holds the honor of being the first winner of the Miss Thang Beauty Pageant and has performed in New York and Florida stages. As a contributing writer for New York City's Next Magazine, Amnesia interviewed artists such as Dolly Parton, Lady Bunny, Kevin Aviance, and Jim Verraros.
Amnesia is the creator of GenderFun.com, a website focusing on gender and sexuality. She currently lives in New York City where she runs the Gender Fun website and YouTube Channel as well as performs full Boy-to-Girl Makeover Transformations on men who enjoy being transformed into women (TransFormPhotos.com).
1979 - 1997
Adrian L. Acosta (Amnesia Sparkles) was born in Montevideo Uruguay. His father was a Butcher and his mother was a Homemaker later turned Esthetician. Adrian is one of three children with an older brother and a younger sister, making him the middle child. He grew up in Florida USA.
Acosta showed interest in the arts at a very young age. He won his first drawing contest in 2nd grade when he drew a school inside a huge glass dome. The assignment was to draw the school of the future. The drawing hung in the administrative office as prize.
He also showed great interest in the opposite sex from an early age. In second grade he was sent to the principle's office for playing "I'll show you mine, if you show me yours" with a female classmate. In third grade he was scolded by his teacher for drawing naked women, an obsession of his.
He had multiple romantic affairs with girls growing up. He "married" his neighborhood sweetheart, Leticia, when they were both 4 or 5 years old. The play-marriage ended abruptly when the Acosta family relocated.
Adrian was bullied by other boys, during his coming of age years, for not having grown hair on his legs like the other boys. He got in a couple of brawls defending his honor.
Acosta's first taste in the performing arts came when he joined the Drama Club (Troupe 2617) at Coconut Creek High School. He won numerous acting awards as well as a design award for best T-shirt design for the Florida District 7 Thespian Competition (http://flthespian.com).
He was also cast in lead roles in numerous school theater productions. Acosta stepped in to play the role of Conrad Birdie for Piper High School, a neighboring High School, when their Conrad Birdie dropped out at the last minute. He made a grand entrance on a shiny black Harley Davidson. The girls went wild!
Acosta began experimenting with film when his parents bought him a camcorder in 1995-96. His interest in girls continued to get him in trouble. A female classmate flashed her breasts at Adrian's camera during the 1996 Florida State Thespian competition resulting in the teacher confiscating the tape.
In 1997 Acosta entered Coconut Creek High School's first Drag Beauty Pageant called Miss Thang. Acosta, with the help of his schoolmate Diana Fye and the support of Jose Robles, brought to life for the first time his alter ego Amnesia Sparkles. Amnesia went on to win "Best Legs" as well as the title of Miss Thang 1997.
1998 - 2002
Acosta continued his life in the theater performing in a number of regional and community theater productions playing mostly male roles with the exception of playing a Kit Kat Girl named Texas in the musical Cabaret. During this time he taught children ages 5-12 acting and musical theater, as well as directed them in Broadway style musical productions while employed for an after school and summer camp theater program.
In 2001 Acosta began experimenting with photography for the first time with his cousin Veronika's camera.
Acosta, following in his mother's foot steps, completed a Skin Care/Makeup Training program at Florida College of Natural Health (http://www.fcnh.com) making him a Licensed Esthetician.
Amnesia Sparkles performed at local bars as well as for family reunions during this time. In early 2002 Amnesia Sparkles made her Television debut on the first season of American Idol, a popular Television talent show. She got the internet forums buzzing when she kissed Simon Cowell, one of the Judges, during the first episode.
Acosta moved to New York City in late 2002 and lived in a humble one bedroom railroad style apartment in Harlem with a friend from Florida. He had a rough time finding employment and sustained himself by eating ramen noodles, cans of tuna, and McDonald's Dollar Menu.
2003 - 2008
In 2005 Amnesia got a break and became a contributing writer for Next Magazine. As a contributing writer for Next Magazine Amnesia got to interview singer-songwriter Dolly Parton, Jim Verreros, and Drag artists such as Lady Bunny, Shequida, and performing artist Kevin Aviance. Amnesia also wrote numerous entertaining articles. She was also interviewed by a number of Gay websites including the Feast of Fun, After Elton, and Queerty.com.
In 2007 Acosta transformed himself into Amnesia Sparkles for the 2nd half of the photography piece "1/2 Man, 1/2 Woman" where he photographed himself as a man and as a woman and then merged the two images to make one image where Adrian and Amnesia are standing side by side. He filmed the makeup application going from boy-to-girl in the style of the Dove Evolution video and posted it on his personal youtube channel "Drawlove" which captured the public's attention.
Amnesia recorded the hook for the song "Looking Back" on the album "Master of Fine Arts" by Gay Rapper Soce the Elemental Wizard. On Friday August 8th, 2008 Soce won the Sirius Radio/Shade 45 Gay Rap Battle on the Gayest Rap Show Ever competition by singing "Searching" LIVE w Amnesia Sparkles singing the hook of the song.
Amnesia continued to hone her craft by performing for her family, as well as doing Live performances in NYC venues such as The Slide, XES, Bowery Poetry Club, and Parkside Lounge. Amnesia also appeared in TV Spots on WB Morning News, HERE TV, Logo's New Now Next. She also did some "extra" work in John Cameron Mitchell's film Short Bus.
2009 - 2014
In 2009 Amnesia launched GenderFun.com, a website focusing on gender and sexuality. Through GenderFun.com she was lucky to have interviewed one of her idols, Super Model of the World Rupaul. In 2010 the first episode of her internet reality show "Getting Amnesia" was broadcast on Gender Fun.
Amnesia participated in Gender Fun video collaborations with numerous personalities from Matthew Camp, Bill Lagaret, Michael Buckley, The Resident, Dan Olson, Jessica Who, and Prada G. Major. As of July 2014 GenderFun YouTube videos have been viewed over 3.6 million times.
In 2010 Acosta became the subject of the documentary "Amnesia" by Melissa Balan, which went on to win Best Documentary at the East Coast Student Film Festival (http://www.melissabalan.com/
Two of Acosta's photographs taken during the 2008 Lawrence King Community vigil were selected and published in book LGBT Identity and and Online New Media. A photograph of artist Taylor Mac taken by Acosta at the 2009 Invasion of the Pines was selected and displayed at the Leslie Lohman Gallery in New York City.
In 2013 Amnesia began performing full Boy-to-Girl Makeover Transformations on men who enjoy being transformed into women (TransFormPhotos.com). In 2014 Acosta wrote an article which was featured in the front page of Huffington Post Gay Voices titled "Why Men Come to Me to Be Transformed Into Women" (http://www.huffingtonpost.
As of 2014 the Gender Fun community keeps on growing on the Gender Fun Facebook page with thousands of gender bending supporters who share their experiences and opinions on gender and sexuality topics.
