Orange Is the New Black’s Laverne Cox is known for her striking ensembles. But when the Cut caught up with her last night at InStyle’s 20th Anniversary Party, we found out that the first item of clothing she ever bought for herself was far from the chic, curve-hugging cocktail numbers she’s known for now: a lab coat from a Salvation Army thrift store. “I dressed kind of crazy as a kid. It was a doctor’s lab coat and I wore it to school,” Cox explained. “I think I was scared to wear dresses and the lab coat was long and dresslike so I think that was my cool compromise. It was junior high, so sexy strays.”
The actress was quick to admit that this sartorial choice didn’t seem as cool to the rest of the middle-school world: “People thought I was crazy, but they always made fun of me, so it wasn’t like it was a different day. The same stuff happened.” Consider this a teaser for Cox’s memoir, out next year. “This is good,” she remarked. “I shouldn’t tell you. I should put this in my book.”