Every slug knows: all that glitters isn’t from Tiffany’s… Queen Holly GoSlugly laid down a shimmery trail of slime that lead straight to her coronation 2011.

She is regal by nature — a multi-tasking hat-switching juggler who finds comfort in the slime-light. Holly GoSlugly is Eugene’s 2011 Slug Queen,  and she is very serious about it.

Photo by Todd Cooper

Much can be said about this homegrown Eugenean who, when she isn’t fully decked out in queenly attire and gracing social events in the name of non-profits, is head of communications at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art. Having fashioned her name in homage to Audrey Hepburn’s character Holly Golightly from the 1961 Blake Edwards film Breakfast at Tiffany’s, GoSlugly is transparent in the assumption of her queenly role.

“I’ve become very comfortable with my multiple personalities,” she says with a laugh while posing for what must be the millionth photo snapped of her over the past week — the new queen waves to passing students and joggers outside the JSMA while still maintaining her royal poise for EW cameramen.

GoSlugly, who goes by Debbie Williamson-Smith in her day-to-day professional life, is far more outspoken and in-your-face with crown and scepter in hand. The correct word is: diva-ish. She is a perfect mix of sublime and campy, two absolutely necessary traits for a Slug Queen. The acquisition of her coveted position was a well-earned victory.

GoSlugly worked the bribe angle hard… a lesson she learned from missing the title last year to the flamboyant Queen Slugasana. “This year I really went after it,” says GoSlugly of her very serious effort reach the very apex of nonsense representing Eugene’s self deprecating good nature.

Not only was she joined onstage by her five dancing “Sluggettes,” — men who donned beautiful dresses and pranced on stage to a parody of Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way,” — but GoSlugly delivered bribes in the form of Slug Queen Shaped Voodoo Doughnuts ( now added to the regular menu–ask for them!). She also worked with the Literary Duck to create a display of the Queen’s favorite books to be launched just before the Eugene Celebration, and is planning a Eugene store front pop-up gallery of slug-inspired art. TBA  October 2011.

GoSlugly has worked to elevate the brand of the Slug Queen monarchy that Queen Slugtoinette worked hard to create back in 2008, and all Old Queens have carefully crafted and shaped over the last 29 years. Given that Slug Queens remain queen even after their year of official public service, it’s a brand will continue to exist as long as Slug Queens “rain”.

For those new to Eugene or unaware of the Slug Queen hoopla (sometimes referred to as an alternative festival and/or pageant), the 30-year-old event is a coronation of Eugene’s unofficial ambassador that takes place every year. First conceived by former Councilor and Country Fair co-founder Cynthia Wooten, the Slug Queen is chosen by way of a no-rules talent show. The new queen is asked to throw a fundraiser for a charity of her choice, and throughout the year she must make appearances at local events such as the Eugene Celebration, First Friday Art Walk and the Jell-O Art Show at the Maude Kerns gallery.

“Being the Slug Queen embraces everything that Eugene is,” GoSlugly says. “This is a come-as-you-are town, where we all contribute and voice our opinions, and slug queens do all that, but with a crown on our heads.”

Walking through the JSMA with GoSlugly leading the way, there is no questioning the queen’s authority. She adjusts her crown and arranges for a roped-off gallery to be opened — one of her coworkers offers to get the door so GoSlugly can maneuver her full costume and regalia through the space. She accepts the gesture with a nod and a smile — it’s good to be queen.