Margaret Cho and Leslie Jordan have been named grand marshalls of this year’s LA Pride Parade, event organizers Christopher Street West Association announced Monday.
The LA Pride Parade will be held on Sunday, June 11, in Hollywood (see map below).
Cho was named Icon Grand Marshall, an “individual who needs no introduction and achieved major milestones within in their career and industry.” The actress/activist recently appeared in two Netflix is a Joke comedy specials: “Stand Out: An LGBTQ+ Celebration” and “Jane Fonda & Lily Tomlin: Ladies Night Live.” She also appeared in the queer film “Fire Island” opposite Joel Kim Booster and guest-starred recently on “Call Me Kat.”
“I’m thrilled and incredibly honored to be the Icon Grand Marshal,” said Cho. “We need this Pride more than ever. I have been attending Pride celebrations since 1978 and this time around the need to celebrate as well as unite is more urgent than it has ever been. Our love is greater than their hate.”
Jordan was posthumously named Legacy Grand Marshall. The actor/activist died last October in single car accident after suffering a cardiac emergency. Jordan received an Emmy award or his portrayal of Beverly Leslie on the queer sitcom “Will & Grace.” At the time of his death, he starred in “Call Me Kat.” His character Phil was written out of the show/given an on-air tribute. Last week, after the show was cancelled, star Mayim Bialik wrote, “Phil lives on forever.”
“On behalf of Leslie Jordan, we are overjoyed by Christopher Street West’s heartfelt recognition to name Leslie as LA Pride’s Legacy Grand Marshal,” said Jana “Cricket” Jordan, Leslie’s sister. “This honor further solidifies the positive impact he made in the world, but more importantly for the LGBTQ+ community. His spirit continues to bring love and light.”
In addition, the ACLU of Southern California, that helped CSW obtain the permit for the first LA Pride parade, as the Community Grand Marshall, which celebrates a group or individual who has had a powerful influence through their work and dedication to and for the LGBTQ community.
The parade, which will feature a special drag performance presented by the ACLU SoCal and staged by Morgan McMichaels to music by 14-time Oscar nominee Diane Warren, will air LIVE on long-time LA Pride broadcasting partner KABC/ABC7 on Sunday, June 11 beginning at 11:00 a.m. PDT. It will also air nationally on ABC News Live and Hulu, and wherever viewers stream ABC7 including abc7.com and the ABC7LA mobile app. Anchor Ellen Leyva and reporter Christiane Cordero from ABC7 Eyewitness News will co-host the ABC7 broadcast. The parade route will begin at Sunset Blvd and Highland Ave heading north, then east onto Hollywood Blvd, then south onto Cahuenga Blvd, ending at Sunset Blvd and Cahuenga Blvd.
Check out a map of the festivities below:
