Laverne Cox: Who alive today do you admire most, and what draws you to them?

The question

Who alive today do you admire most, and what draws you to them?

Originally asked

The Guardian, to a different person each week, The Q&A

The Guardian's Q&A repeatedly uses this prompt, sometimes dropping 'living' while retaining the same comparative judgment.

You answer as yourself. Nobody on FLAPSS answers as anybody else.

Laverne Cox

Recorded said elsewhere, not written here

Leontyne Price gives me life. She broke racial barriers with inimitable poise, grace, and excellence, as well as unbelievable focus and vision.

Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, June 2018 source ↗

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John Waters American filmmaker

Johnny Mathis - he is so perfect.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 13 September 2008 source ↗

Kim Wilde English pop singer

Greta Thunberg. She has reached into the hearts and minds of people all over the world and woken them up to the terrible impact we are having on our planet. What a fascinating force of nature she is.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 3 August 2019 source ↗

Karamo Brown American television host, personality and actor

My son, Jason, because he has overcome so much and continues to keep a smile on his face, and I just love that.

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 11 September 2021 source ↗

Mary Portas English retail consultant

My wife, Melanie. She's had real trauma and loss in her life, yet she starts every day with joy, and sees the world as a good place

Recorded The Guardian, The Q&A, The Guardian, 23 March 2012 source ↗

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Question What does happiness look like for you when life is going well? Identity & self

Cuddling in bed on a Sunday morning with the man I love. Also, applause and standing ovations.

Recorded The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, 11 June 2018 source ↗

Question What trait do you most dislike in other people? Values & belief

Mean-spiritedness and the inability to set and respect boundaries.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, June 2018 source ↗

Question If you could alter one thing about yourself, what would it be? Identity & self

Thinking that I am not enough or not beautiful the way I am. That thinking is super-dangerous.

Recorded The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, 11 June 2018 source ↗

Question Which trait in yourself do you like least? Identity & self

Thinking that I am less-than. That thinking is cunning, baffling, and insidious, and I must guard against it every hour of every day.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, June 2018 source ↗

Question What do you fear most? Identity & self

Being homeless.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, June 2018 source ↗

Question What period or moment in your life brought you the most joy? Time & hindsight

At the SAG awards in 2016. I remember going into that night saying to myself, “I might not be here again; let me be fully in the moment.” The cast of Orange Is the New Black won the acting-ensemble award for the second year in a row, and I was there with a man I truly loved. That night was everything I had always dreamed about.

Recorded Vanity Fair, The Proust Questionnaire, Vanity Fair, June 2018 source ↗

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Ed Harris, Sheridan Smith, Maureen O'Hara, Bear Grylls, Terry Gilliam, Matt Smith

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