Transsexuals

In something of a cultural and sexual milestone for China, modern dancer Jin Xing made her debut Friday night in a packed auditorium owned by the People's Liberation Army. Jin was already one of China's most famous dancers before this event--but as a man. Beginning in 1989, Jin spent four years in the United States and Italy studying and performing with the Martha Graham and Alvin Ailey dance groups.

A woman identified as the man wanted for a 1979 slaying in South Carolina denied Thursday that she is the suspect as a judge ordered a new fingerprint comparison to settle the issue. Los Angeles Municipal Judge Jacob Adajain ordered the tests after Valerie Nicole Taylor's lawyer asked for them. The lawyer, Walter Krauss, said Taylor was once known as Freddie Lee Turner--the name of the suspect in the shooting death in the small town of Gaffney, S.C., 17 years ago.

Aspiring model Valerie Nicole Taylor and accused murderer Freddie Lee Turner are "one and the same person," a Los Angeles Municipal Court judge ruled Tuesday after comparing fingerprints taken from him in Atlanta and from her in Los Angeles. "The court is satisfied this is the person that is wanted by the demanding state," declared Judge Jacob Adajian, clearing the way for Taylor's extradition to Cherokee County, S.C. Taylor had been fingerprinted after her arrest earlier this month.

A woman arrested in Los Angeles has been identified from fingerprints as a man wanted for 17 years for murder in South Carolina. Burbank police said they believe that Valerie Nicole Taylor, who was known as a transvestite, had a sex change operation sometime after the killing. "Upon the arrest, we actually had a medical evaluation performed [to determine] what jail facility the inmate should be housed at," said Burbank Police Lt. Larry Koch. "The person is a female at this time.

The police finally figured out where to find Freddy Lee Turner. But when they went to arrest him, they put the handcuffs on Valerie Nicole Taylor. Ms. Taylor, arrested in Los Angeles last week, has been identified from fingerprints as Mr. Turner--the man wanted for 17 years in a South Carolina murder. Burbank police said they believe the suspect, who was known as a transvestite, had a sex change operation some time after the killing.

Dressed in a fire-engine red miniskirt and matching pumps, 30-year-old film editor Bart Cox walks fearlessly--albeit a bit unsteadily--into his not-so-secret other life. In the bat of a false eyelash, he has transformed himself from a 6-foot-5 gun-shooting outdoorsman type into the towering Empira, out for the night at a wild barroom bash in Silver Lake. A cross-dresser since age 5, Cox is an unrepentant example of gender-bending 1990s-style.

Psssst. Susan has this little secret. Her other half is her best girlfriend, her lover and her husband--all rolled into one. In the daytime, he drives a truck. Sometimes when they go to bed, he wants to borrow her silk little nothings. Susan calls him \o7 he\f7 when he dresses in men's clothing and \o7 she\f7 when he wears feminine things. Sometimes, it gets confusing. Susan hasn't told her parents, her co-workers, her friends. Nobody.

He arrives for work at 7:15 on a cold, gloomy Thursday morning, wearing a brown Stetson, a down jacket, jeans and black boots. He'd more easily be taken for a rancher than America's dean of sex-change surgeons. But pulling on operating room scrubs, Dr. Stanley Biber is in his element. He's utterly relaxed about this morning's surgery, a delicate affair that will take three hours to complete.

The city manager of Largo has received the support of the mayor and other city officials to undergo a sex change while remaining in his job. Steven Stanton told Largo's 1,200 employees of his decision in an e-mail. He said he had wanted to be a woman since he was a child. "This will not be an easy path to travel, but I am excited about the future," said Stanton, 48, who is married and has a son. He has been city manager for 14 years.

The security guard in the lobby of the Los Angeles Times couldn't help but ask the question. When he looked at the computer in front of him earlier this week, he saw the picture of a strapping blond man. The screen identified the employee: "Michael Penner, Editorial." But the person flashing the ID was a tall woman, with long, strawberry blond hair. "Ma'am, whose card are you using?" the guard asked.