Pink Flamingos: Is John Waters’ Last Enemy The Catholic Church?

2026-01-13

This week on Morally Offensive, Bill and Kevin dig into the origins and impact of John Waters’ Pink Flamingos. The crew is joined by Bryan Wendorf of the Chicago Underground Film Festival and Thomas Bottoms of Bottoms of the Barrel to trace Waters’ early years making films in Baltimore, from DIY shorts and church-basement screenings to cultivating an audience far outside the mainstream. We break down the production of Pink Flamingos, the creation of Divine as a transgressive screen ico...

This week on Morally Offensive, Bill and Kevin dig into the origins and impact of John Waters’ Pink Flamingos. The crew is joined by Bryan Wendorf of the Chicago Underground Film Festival and Thomas Bottoms of Bottoms of the Barrel to trace Waters’ early years making films in Baltimore, from DIY shorts and church-basement screenings to cultivating an audience far outside the mainstream.

We break down the production of Pink Flamingos, the creation of Divine as a transgressive screen icon, and how the film’s deliberate provocation helped spark outrage, fascination, and the rise of the midnight movie phenomenon. Along the way, we discuss censorship, exhibition, and why Waters’ brand of bad taste proved so culturally disruptive, and so enduring.

Want to help us pay our bills and keep the podcast going: DONATE NOW!

Check out our new Merch Store!

We've got t-shirts, hats, tote bags and branded denim jackets!

Check out https://cuff.org/ to find out more about the Chicago Underground Film Festival!

Find out more about Thomas over at Bottoms of the Barrel: https://www.bottomsofthebarrel.com/

Comments (3)