Candis Cayne

I'm catching up on Season 2 of "Drop Dead Diva." Today I'm watching the episode "Queen of Mean," which besides guest-starring the wonderful Cybil Shepard, also features a transgender character named Allison. The character began her life as a man, married a woman, and then transitioned to a woman. Her wife has recently died and the wife's parents are suing for her estate, saying that when Allison became a woman, she revoked her claim to being her wife's legal partner, under California family law. Allison is, of course, fighting this in court to be able to stay in the home she shared with her wife and keep her possessions.


First off, I'm really pleased with how this character is treated. One of the lawyers in the firm representing Allison had a subtle, yet visible disdain for her, at first. Yet, through the course of the trial, he comes around and realizes that Allison is simply fighting for something that everyone wants-- the right to love their partner and have their union respected by others. There is also a very touching scene with Allison and her father-in-law. *sniff!*

Secondly, the actress playing Allison immediately caught my eye. Must be the 'Dar. ;-)
Upon looking up this episode, I found out that Allison is played by actress Candis Cayne, who is herself a transgender woman. Born as a man in Hawaii, Candis was a drag queen and eventually transitioned, and is now a successful actress, appearing as a regular character in "Dirty Sexy Money."

Gorgeous!