Alexis Arquette

Alexis Arquette (born Robert Arquette; July 28, 1969 – September 11, 2016) was an American actress, musician, and cabaret performer.

Early life

Arquette was born Robert Arquette in Los Angeles. She was a transgender woman. Her mother was Brenda Olivia "Mardi" (née Nowak), an actress, poet, theater operator, activist, acting teacher, and therapist. Her father Lewis Arquette was an actor and director. Her mother was Jewish, from a family from Russia and Poland. Her father was a convert from Catholicism to Islam. Lewis's family's surname was originally "Arcouet", coming from her partial French-Canadian ancestry. Her paternal grandfather was comedian Cliff Arquette. Alexis Arquette was distantly related to American explorer Meriwether Lewis.[5] Her siblings were Rosanna, Patricia, Richmond, and David.

In 1982, at the age of 12, Arquette's first acting gig was as "this little kid who's on a ride with all these women and whatnot" in the music video "She's a Beauty" by The Tubes. 

In 1986, Arquette debuted on the big screen in an uncredited role as Alexis, the androgynous friend and bandmate of sexually ambivalent teenager Max Whiteman (Evan Richards) in Down and Out in Beverly Hills. 20 years later, Arquette transitioned from male to female, an experience that was documented in the film Alexis Arquette: She's My Brother, which debuted at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival.

Career

At nineteen, Arquette landed her first sizable film role, playing transvestite Georgette in the screen adaptation of Last Exit to Brooklyn. The majority of Arquette's film work was in low-budget or independent films. Her starring roles include Jumpin' at the Boneyard (as a crack addict), acting opposite Tim Roth, and New Zealand-shot fantasy Jack Be Nimble, as a man seeking revenge for a horrible childhood, and low budget comedy Killer Drag Queens on Dope, as a murderous drag queen.

Arquette appeared in I Think I Do, Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror, and Sometimes They Come Back... Again, among more than 40 other independent movies.

She also had supporting roles in Threesome and Bride of Chucky. She played a Boy George impersonator in the Adam Sandler-Drew Barrymore films The Wedding Singer and Blended. In 2001, Arquette returned to New Zealand to play Roman emperor Caligula in two episodes of Xena: Warrior Princess. That same year, Arquette guest starred in the Friends episode "The One with Chandler's Dad" and cameoed in Son of the Beach.

In September 2005, VH1 announced Arquette as one of the celebrity house-guests on the 6th season of The Surreal Life. On January 31, 2007, Arquette was a featured celebrity client and guest judge on the première episode of Bravo's reality show Top Design. Arquette also made a cameo appearance in Robbie Williams' "She's Madonna" video.

Death

Arquette died on September 11, 2016, following what was described as a "lengthy illness". She was 47 years old.