Today, Rose performs in both communities. Ten years later, the Rose in the Pines performance launched the Fire Island Pines Arts Project, which brought more musical theater and preforming arts to the Pines. In 1981, Rose was asked to perform in the Pines alongside Broadway composer David Baker. Many events welcome the involvement of both communities. Since the Invasion, the Pines and Cherry Grove have coexisted in harmony. This created a clear separation between the two gay communities, which is what led to the events that triggered the Invasion in the first place. The Pines was just west of Cherry Grove and was considered slightly more conservative and luxurious. When the raids died down, people who could afford it would move down to the Pines. They were all arrested, and they lost their jobs.” Many of the people that were arrested were executives of different companies in New York, and they took their names and addresses and listed them in The New York Times, in the New York Post, in the news. Robert had to post bail for some of his friends. The victims were then removed from the island and needed to pay upwards of $1,000 bail. Undercover police officers would arrest those that encountered them. Unfortunately, that all changed in the early sixties when the quaint community was affected by raids that led to the arrest of many gay men. It was a time for them to be glamorous and express their bold personalities. Bob and his friends would come out on weekends in the summertime and throw themes parties and dress up. Throughout the fifties, Cherry Grove was a haven for the gay community. The first day, Robert got off the boat to a banner with the words “Welcome Rose Levine” waiting for him upon his arrival. From there, the name stuck because another classmate of his who was first to invite him out to Fire Island, had already announced to everyone that Rose Levine is coming. It was then that he told me the name was practically chosen for him.īack in fashion school, a classmate of his had written the name “Rose Levine” on a dusty window. When I sat down with Robert, I wanted to learn more about the origin story behind the name Rose. And from there his drag persona continued to grow. Rose was incredibly popular on the island. And they would say to me, do you need to dress for a show? I would say yes, and I would wear it on Saturday and return it on Monday.” They started to design clothes for me, or they would be Seventh Avenue designers who I knew from business. “We had a lot of designers here who saw me, and they knew me. From there, Robert was able to refine his look from basic dresses to designer. As a fashion buyer in New York, he was already familiar with the high-end brands and stores all around the United States.
However, Robert was responsible for bringing glamour into what was considered comedy. “Drag was sort of a frumpy comic relief to people who just got up and did it funny.” In the beginning, Bob would borrow wigs and high heels or even go buy yarn for a makeshift wig. Rose performed her first show in July 1955 and has been a fixture ever since. Their local theater hosted drag shows three or four times a season. The art of drag was an important part of the community. It was not long after that Robert got involved in the world of drag. Then, a friend of mine rented a house and invited me as a guest – And I never left.” “I've heard about Fire Island, but I never thought of visiting.
Twenty years earlier Bob arrived in Cherry Grove and has been a resident ever since. Now, he is one of the last remaining original invaders and the Invasion of the Pines has been an annual celebration for the last 48 years and has grown, at its peak, to about 400 participants.
Bob, then a young columnist with Fire Island News, coined the term “Invasion of the Pines” in writing about the event. One of those 17 was Robert “Rose” Levine.
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