My 96th dinner interview took place on a cruise ship somewhere in the Caribbean back in January 2017. That’s when I met Matt Yee, who at the time was a mainstay on gay and straight cruises, and also in high demand on land, for his drag cabaret show. Over a long and highly enjoyable dinner at one of the ship’s restaurants, Matt told me about how he reinvented his life, leaving a career in law behind to pursue his dream of entertaining.
Matt and I stayed in contact and there were a couple of times that he had some one-off shows in New York, and I was able to make it up there. He always had a smile on his face, was quick to laugh, and made you feel at ease.
Sadly, in 2023, Matt was diagnosed with liver cancer and died in December that year. There’s a decent obituary by the Bay Area Reporter detailing Matt’s decades of performing not only on land but also on cruise ships around the world.