Harvey Fierstein is an openly gay American playwright and actor famous for his unorthodox and outlandish performances that not only entertain people, but also drive home an important point—that gays and lesbians are inherent components of the contemporary society. The product of a normal middle-class upbringing, he rose to fame with his collection of plays, ‘Torch Song Trilogy’ which he wrote and starred in. The plays which won him two prestigious Tony Awards dealt with the life and loves of a gay drag queen in the early 1980’s. Homosexuality was still considered a taboo topic during those times but Fierstein had the courage and creativity to successfully address this issue in his plays. He was one of the first celebrities to come out of the closet. He was a daredevil who had no qualms about playing a lesbian cleaning woman in his theatrical debut, Andy Warhol’s ‘Pork’ in 1971. A versatile actor, he played Edna Turnblad, the lead character’s mother, in the musical ‘Hairspray’ for which he won numerous accolades. In addition to theatre, he has also acted in a number of films like ‘Garbo Talks’, ‘Duplex’, ‘Mrs.Doubtfire’, etc. Famous for his gravelly accent, he has lent his voice to various characters on shows like ‘The Simpsons’, ‘Mulan’ and ‘Family Guy’.