🎙️ Drag Saved My Life — The Story of JD Cargill aka Anita Doll, Life After News 💄

💄 What happens when a former CNN entertainment producer trades celebrity interviews for contour palettes and a tour buse? Meet JD Cargill — or as Palm Springs now knows her, Anita Doll.
In this wildly fun, deeply moving, and at times jaw-droppingly honest conversation, Jason Ball interviews JD during his full transformation into Anita Doll — lashes, foundation, and all. Together they unpack how JD went from chasing fame to creating joy, and how drag didn’t just change his career — it saved his life.
🔥 Highlights from the Episode
•From KTLA to CNN: JD reflects on how entertainment news once felt like salvation — until it became spiritual suffocation.
•Drag as a Spiritual Awakening: The pandemic forced JD into stillness… and into drag. In his Pasadena basement, Anita Doll was born.
•Birth of Drag and Fly: JD combines news production chops with queer creativity to create Drag and Fly Tours, a drag queen–hosted, mobile theater experience through Palm Springs.
•The Power of AI + Imagination: How JD used artificial intelligence to design a custom tour vehicle with stadium seating and panoramic views.
•Faith and Fabulousness: JD opens up about reconciling his queer identity with his religious upbringing.
•Anita as Armor: The difference between JD and Anita isn’t just wardrobe. Anita is a superhero — bold, fearless, and full of self-love.
•The Business of Joy: From viral videos to word-of-mouth buzz, JD shares the real talk of building a brand rooted in community, inclusivity, and sparkle.
•Dreaming Big: With ambitions to make Palm Springs the drag capital of the world, JD reveals plans for The Dollhouse, The Tea Garden, The Flight Club, and beyond.
🐉 About Drag and Fly Tours
Drag and Fly Tours is a one-of-a-kind sightseeing experience hosted by drag queens aboard a custom-built, stadium-seated tour vehicle. The show combines comedy, storytelling, music, and video — all produced with a TV producer’s precision and a queen’s flair.
📍 Location: Palm Springs, California
🔗 More info: dragandflytours.com
✨ Quotes to Remember
“Drag didn’t save me from dying — it saved me from disappearing.”
— JD Cargill
“Anita is everything I need to be — fearless, fabulous, and free.”
— JD Cargill
📬 More from Life After News
•🌵 Desert Dispatch — Our Palm Springs newsletter: https://desertdispatch.beehiiv.com/
•🏨 Old Ranch Inn — Stay with us in the heart of Palm Springs: https://oldranchinn.com/
🔗 Stay Connected to Life After News
•🎧 Subscribe: Spotify, Apple Podcasts & more
•📺 Watch: YouTube.com/@LifeAfterNews
•📱 Follow: @MrJasonBall & @LifeAfterNewsPod
•💼 LinkedIn: Jason Ball
•🏨 Stay: Old Ranch Inn
•🗞️ Read: Desert Dispatch – the newsletter on storytelling & reinvention
•📅 New Episodes: Every Tuesday
•💌 Love the show? Share it with a friend!
And don’t forget to share this episode with someone who needs a little sparkle.

Let Life After News inspire your next chapter. Because leaving the news doesn’t mean the story’s over—it means a new one’s just beginning.