Women Behind the Scenes in Television: Slowly and Steadily Winning the Race?

At the beginning there was Lucy, and it was good.  Lucille Ball played Lucy Ricardo on I Love Lucy; she was the first housewife, who wanted more, she wanted to be in the show.  Lucy did some cooking and some cleaning, but most of an episode was her trying to work, trying to be in Ricky's show, and make it big.  Lucy was of course a lot funnier than Desi, but at the end of the day she lost out on her dreams.  Behind the scenes Lucy ruled with an iron fist; she was half of the company Desilu Productions (a television production empire).  Lucy was the brains behind the creative side of things she put shows like Star Trek and The Untouchables into production.

The most famous shows produced or filmed by Desilu were: The Dick Van Dyke Show, Mission Impossible, Make Room for Daddy, My Three Sons, I Spy, The Andy Griffith Show, Gomer Pyle USMC, That Girl, Mannix, and Hogan's Heroes.  Almost everything this production touched eventually turned to syndicated gold!  Desliu Productions produced most of memorable television series in the late 50s early 60s.  Many of these shows pushing boundaries, like Star Trek, That Girl, and The Dick Van Dyke Show.  Lucy was ahead of her time in many ways; she was the most powerful woman in television during this era.

Inevitably the dust settled after the divorce of Lucy and Ricky and where things fell with Desilu.  The late 60s and 70s brought a rise in the influence of feminist ideals with television shows Mary was on the pill, Maude had an abortion, Gloria was promoting women's liberation, and got divorced.  Carol Burnett had her own Variety Series, entitled The Carol Burnett Show where she was producer but not in the writer's room.  Burnett headlined the show with an ensemble cast; she never won a variety performer Emmy, but Tim Conway and Harvey Korman dominated this category.  While the late 60s, and mostly 70s highlighted some great female characters (mostly thanks to Norman Lear and James L. Brooks) there was something missing, the women.

Women soon started to come back in full force behind the scenes in the mid to late eighties, through three television series Designing Women (1986-1993), Roseanne (1988-1997), and Murphy Brown (1988-1998).

Designing Women was created by Linda Bloodworth-Thomason.  Thomason was the main writer for the series, and most of the other credited writers were also female.  While the show has some slap stick comedy, and often loses out credibility to the superior Golden Girls this show was at the forefront of creating a show about women by women.  Thomason added the personal touches to this show making it richer and deeper, talking about gaining weight, spousal abuse, AIDS, divorce, being a single parent, but at the end of the day female friendship.

Roseanne broke new grounds as well it was a show created by her, which she and another female Marcy Carsey, and Tom Werner produced.  Roseanne was the first mainstream sitcom about blue collar families.  Roseanne ruled the house, and pushed the boundaries of the the traditional mother from the 50s and 60s.  Roseanne based this show on her own experiences, wanting to be more realistic.  This series also tackled obesity, teen pregnancy, gay issues, divorce, abuse, and much more.  At the core Roseanne broke ground because she was herself, and people had never seen anyone like her on television.

At the same time as the other two shows Diane English brought Murphy Brown to life with actress Candice Bergen.  English wrote Murphy to be a somewhat flawed (coming out of rehab) smart journalist.  Bergen brought Murphy to life with so much much flare; she was truly a force to reckoned with, she was Lou Grant, not Mary.  English also broke ground with Murphy, making her a single mother, one of the first, which even got Vice President Dan Quayle is a tizzy.

These women broke barriers, they were loud, stated their opinions, and were not the typical wives and mothers of television.  Together these three shows (brought to life by women) represented something which pushed the envelope, and allowed audiences to not feel betrayed by the legacy of Donna Reed et., al.  Then there was a shift, as these shows hit their peak Seinfeld and Saturday Night Live, and the numerous cop dramas brought back the boys club.  Fewer women were writing, and creating television series.  While television quality was advancing the amount of women behind the scenes had plateaued, and even dropped.

Enter Tina Fey the first head writer of Saturday Night Live in 1999.  I have written numerous times about the talent of Ms. Fey, but I can't convey more just how important this women has not only been to comedy, but to the face of television.  Fey got the ball rolling; she was given the reigns to the "boys club" of Saturday Night Live, while sitting in the Weekend Update desk, and proving how funny, and talented women are.  Fey's reign as head writer at Saturday Night Live lasted until 2006.  2006 was also the birth of a show entitled 30 Rock, which Fey, created, produced, wrote for, and starred.  Fey's 30 Rock is seen as one of the funniest comedy series of the modern era, and all time.

I have spoken mostly about comedies, because female produced/created/written dramas centered on women from women still have a way to go.  The person who changing the face of this female driven drama is Shonda Rhimes (Grey's Anatomy, 2005-Present, Private Practice, 2007-2013, and Scandal 2012-Present).  While many will write of Shonda's shows as soapy (which they are) and melodramatic (which they are) there is something about the way she writes people, which gets at the human element so well.  Rhimes herself has stated Grey's is a love story for Meredith and Derek, but in reality it's a love story between Meredith and Christina, two women who value their careers more than anything.  Shonda has created complex women like Addison Montgomery in the spin-off of Grey's entitled Private Practice.  This show like Grey's deals with the eternal working women who walks that tight rope.  Scandal is Shonda's passion project, and a show she has always wanted to tell, the show also has the first African American female lead of a drama series since Julia starring Diahanne Carroll.  Shonda is the example of the women changing the dramatic television world one step at a time, and her influence will reverberate to shake things up even further.

Fey and Rhimes are just two of the powerful women behind the scenes within the last decade or so Amy Sherman-Palladino, Gilmore Girls (2000-2007), Bunheads (2012-Present) Jenji Kohan,Weeds (2005-2012) Diablo Cody, United States of Tara (2009-2011), Liz Brixius and Linda Wallem, Nurse Jackie (2009-Present, Michelle King, The Good Wife (2009-Present), Elizabeth Meriweather, New Girl (2011-Present), Lena Dunham, Girls (2012-Present), Mindy Kailing, The Mindy Project (2012-Present).  This is just the women behind the scenes, many star in their own shows, but the key factor is the growing influence of women behind the scenes, which is creating greater roles for women in television.  If only this were the case for film.

From Lucille Ball to Tina Fey to Lena Dunham, these women have impacted the way female characters have been seen on television.  Each of these ladies had a voice, and changed the face of a generation.  While there could be more diversity (more lesbians, or women of color) that area of diversity has grown slightly as well.  There is still a long way to go if you look at the statistics below:

Reality shows employed 21% women, while sitcoms and dramas employed 28% women.

Women achieved historical highs as creators of shows (26%) and executive producers (25%). These numbers mark an 8% and 3% increase from the previous year, respectively.

The number of female producers jumped one percentage point to 38%

The number of female writers rose 15 percentage points to 30%.

The number of women working as directors in prime time stayed flat over the last year at 11%

The number of female editors dropped seven percentage points to 13% over the last year.

90% of primetime programs employed no female directors

from (http://www.thegrindstone.com/2012/09/18/office-politics/women-creating-more-tv-shows-157/#ixzz2VHRSwNlr)

If you look at late night television as an example most all late television is fronted by male hosts, with mostly male writing staffs, except for Chelsea Lately who is another television pioneer.  Women are gaining ground, but she is a prime example of the male dominated world of late night television.  Not only are men still the dominate forces in late night, but they are still (percentage wise) most of the actors, producers, writers, directors, and editors.  Women have come a long way, but there is still a lot of ground to gain.

Admission Fails to Make the Grade Despite Having Two Star Students, Fey and Rudd

Admission (2 1/2 stars out of 5)

Directed by Paul Weitz (American Pie, About a Boy, Little Fockers)

Written by Karen Croner (One True Thing)

Starring: Tina Fey, Paul Rudd, Nat Wolff, and Lily Tomlin

Tina Fey and Paul Rudd are two of my favorite comedic people working today.  Fey was one of the best head writers at Saturday Night Live, produced, wrote, and starred in one of the best sitcoms 30 Rock, and she she host well!  Rudd is that everyman who play silly or dry from Clueless, 40 Year Old Virgin, Knocked Up, and so much more this guy is beyond like able.  The combination of these two was inevitable, and should produce some of the best material, enter a poorly structured screenplay, which borders on contrived.

The film centers around Portia Nathan (Fey) an admissions officer at Princeton.  Portia is a pretty by the book person; she has had the job for 16 years, and she is often described as boring by one of the characters.  The process of admission to Princeton is not boring, the film explores the high stakes process of admission to a competitive higher education institution.  While involved in the latest round of reviewing applications Portia John Pressman (Rudd) who runs a new school called Quest, which has its first group of graduating seniors.  While interacting with this group John introduces Portia to Jeremiah (Wolff) whom John claims is her son.  Portia has claimed throughout the early stages of the film she is no good with kids, but as Jeremiah expresses interest in admission to Princeton Portia's maternal instincts kick into high gear.

Two things struck me at first with this film.  The first was a professional in higher education.  I work at Northeastern University in Boston, a somewhat competitive institution, and it's interesting to see who gets in, and how that creates a class dynamic.  I could talk about the higher education side of this film for days, the helicopter parents, the stress students face, the role bias plays (racial socio-economic etc) in an admission process.  I have to say that I admire the way this film covered the elements of higher education, the pain the pressure for both students and parents.  Croner whose son was in the film and has gone through the admission process on some level gets every little emotion right.

The second is also related to Croner's script, and the moments that were just missed or contrived.  In reading it seems as though Cronner strayed a bit from the book written by Jean Horiff Korelitz.  (Here is an interview from Vulture where the two talk about their collaboration http://www.vulture.com/2013/03/admission-novelist-first-reeled-at-film-version.html).  Koreliztz's book focuses mainly on the admission process, which as stated above is the most engaging piece of the movie, but makes up a small percentage.  Instead Croner focuses on this sappy rom-com-y type story, which, along with the gags like Portia constantly seeing her ex is a waste of screen time.

Weitz never succeeds with the material either, and his direction of both actors and the premise seem surface level.  The one aspect of the film, which I loved (and again related to the actual admissions process) was getting to see the actual image of student as Fey or others were reading their applications.  I thought this added depth and style to a shallow surface level film.

The film has its fun moments Fey and Rudd are charming, but I would have rather seen them in darker material together.  While I love Fey I want to see her challenge herself more as an actress and step outside of the Liz Lemon character; she carried that through this film, and while it did not hurt the film it did show she still has some growth within the film world.

The film is sappy, predictable, sometimes funny, and has a few moments which are endearing.  The pay off is not enough.  I would have liked to explore the complex struggle Portia faces at work, and through the concept of providing constant rejection to students as they apply to Princeton.  I am also a higher education dork, but when the script gets this right, and fails on the love story, what else would you want?

Women in Comedy Part II: Acting, Directing, Writing, Creating, Producing!

This past Saturday night Lena Dunham became the first winner of the Director's Guild of America (DGA) Award in the television comedy category.  Dunham won the DGA for the episode entitled "Pilot" or the first episode of the show Girls.  While women have won this category in the drama category, most of the recent wins have come in the most recent years.  One of the most recent wins was Patty Jenkins winning for the first episode of the television series The Killing.

Over the last decade female characters in television series both comedy and drama have become more and more interesting and dynamic.  One of the main reasons for these dynamic women in television is mainly because there are more women behind the scenes as creators, directors, writers, and producers.  In the drama world Shonda Rhimes is the best example working, with shows like Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice, and Scandal centered all on female leads.  Yet the women of comedy have grown the most, and in larger numbers.

I would say that Tina Fey was at the start of this trend in the world of television comedy.  Fey an SNL alum created a small, but critically acclaimed television series about Liz Lemon who works on an NBC Variety Show named TGS. Sound familiar?  Fey's television series, 30 Rock, was not a monster hit in the ratings, but the show had an impact in many ways.  Fey started this trend where she not only starred in the show, but she created the show, produced the show, and wrote for 30 Rock.  Fey's Liz Lemon does feels as though she is a genuine creation of her own make; she is Tina Fey.  I always think of 30 Rock as the modern day Mary Tyler Moore Show, but Mary Richards was written and created by a woman now.

Fey influenced gal pal Amy Poehler in her next step after SNL, Poehler is stars in Parks and Recreation, and writes many of the episodes for the show.  I believe that New Girl would be something different without creator/producer Liz Meriweather behind the scenes.  The combination of Deschanel and Meriwather makes Jess an even more interesting layered, and of course quirky character.  Mindy Kailing who was a producer and writer for The Office has her own show now as well, where stars produces, and writes.  While The Mindy Project is still finding its footing the series feels right out of the mind of the star herself, and Mindy's adventures make sense because they are a creation of her own doing.

Then there is today's "modern" girl who has brought women even further to the forefront in television, Lena Dunham. Dunham's Girls is a show where you may not like the characters, you may not think its funny, but boy does it have a strong power.  While I think its one of the funniest shows on television Girls sharply points out the harsh realities of generations inability to cope, struggle, but they know how to have fun, and believe that life should be this amazing adventure.  Dunham has created four spectacularly different female characters that bring out all of these elements.  Dunham is a is genius, and  week after week she creates an evolutionary pattern for women working in television.

If you look at each of these women they star(ed) in some of the funniest shows of the last ten years, and have laid the groundwork for the future of television to continue to evolve, and create incredible female characters.  They have also started this great trend of letting women have more power over their own voice, and establish precedent for future generations to come.  These women are trailblazers in the world of television, and the work they do helps further the art of television.

Argo Wins Best Ensemble at SAG, Downton Abbey and Modern Family win on Television Side

Tonight Argo stepped even closer to a Best Picture win at the Academy Awards.  Argo has now won Best Picture at the Broadcast Film Critics Association, Golden Globes, Producer's Guild Awards, and here.  At this very moment I can feel many film critics and Oscar pundits switching their Lincoln Best Picture win to Argo.  One of the most intriguing things to me is if Argo wins Best Picture who wins Best Director?  I will be theorizing that one for a while.

In the other film categories Lincoln picked up two trophies one for Best Lead Actor (Daniel Day-Lewis), and one for Supporting Actor (Tommy Lee Jones).  Day-Lewis has the Best Actor prize in the bag, and Tommy Lee Jones has a strong shot at the Best Supporting Actor award, but he was not there to accept, so look for missing Christoph Waltz to be a spoiler.

Jennifer Lawrence made the Best Actress category more interesting tonight beating Jessica Chastain, this puts Lawrence out front, but never count out any surprises although with Harvey Weinstein behind her campaign she has the best chance.  Anne Hathaway further proved that her dream she dreamt will come true winning Best Supporting Actress, and I like that she thanked her Dark Knight cast; she gave a much better speech.

On the television side the Comedy Winners remained as stale as day old bread.  Alec Baldwin and Tina Fey whom I love won for Best Actor and Actress, and obviously it was as a parting gift for their great work on 30 Rock.  Modern Family also won for a third year in a row, and while I love their ensemble there are so many other great ensembles out there.  I guess I am just glad Betty White did not win this year or else they would have been the exact same winners as last year.  Baldwin and Modern Family have won together for the last three years, sloppy!

In the mini-series or movie category rubber stamped winner Kevin Costner and Julianne Moore won.  Costner was not present, but neither were any of his competition.  I think this is the first time in all my years of watching award shows where not a single nominee in a category has shown up.

The drama categories finally shook things up for the television world.  Best Actor went to Bryan Cranston he beat out front runner Damien Lewis.  Claire Danes was not nominated last year, but won Best Actress last year.  Downton Abbey won Best Ensemble, and I loved watching the actress who plays Mrs. Hughes accept for the cast; she was too precious.

One of the highlights of the evening was watching Dick Van Dyke get his lifetime achievement award. In watching his film reel, and hearing beautiful but brief acceptance of the award it was a great moment in one of the more boring award shows.

Goodbye 30 Rock: A Look at Seven Great Seasons with 7 Great Episodes

The seven best, or well my seven favorite episodes of 30 Rock span from seasons 1 through seasons 5.  Season 6 was a bit of a mess, but this season has improved on the quality.  What makes a great television episode is hard to pin point.  Many shows turn in quality episodes time and time again. 30 Rock is one of those shows, so picking seven was difficult, but these 7 seven stand out to me as thought with a head above the rest.

"Jack-Tor" Season 1 Episode 5 Written by Robert Carlock  and Directed by Don Scardino

From the introduction of Jenna's classic song "Muffin Top" to watching CEO Jack try to act this episode is one of the best!

"Tracey Does Conan" Season 1 Episode 7 Written Tina Fey by and Directed by Adam Bernstein

Liz going a little wonky after giving blood, Tracey being stable on Conan (although he falls asleep) and Jenna in the hard to pronounce Rural Jurror.

"Rosemary's Baby" Season 2 Episode 4 Written by Jack Burditt and Directed by Michael Engler 

Liz gets "followship" for being a good number two for Jack; she also meets her lonely but independent minded idol Rosemary (Carrie Fisher).  The highlight of the episode is Jack's impersonations of Tracey, his father, mother, step-dad and neighbors.

"Sandwich Day" Season 2 Episode 14 Written Robert Carlock, Jack Burditt  and Directed by Don Scardino

I am going corporate monkeys! Love it, Liz picking a sandwich over a man, what more could be said.  You'll all have chins, damn Liz is right food matters!

 "Believe in Stars" Season 3 Episode 2 Written Robert Carlock and Directed by Don Scardino

One word! Oprah, and Liz proves she can get out of jury duty in Chicago dressed Princess Leia, priceless.

"Anna Howard Shaw" Day Season 4 Episode 13 Written by Matt Hubbard Directed by Ken Whittingtham-Liz at the Dentist

Liz gets high on anesthesia after a trip to the dentists office and the three Jamaican women become her three exes, priceless. 

"When it Rains it Pours" Season 5 Episode 2 Written Robert Carlock and Directed by Don Scardino

"Liz finds out that a guy in editing is spreading rumors about her, Jack begins recording advice videos for his unborn son, Tracy takes steps to make sure he's there for his daughter's birth, and Kenneth tries to prove he has a purpose."

The best writer/director team is clearly Robert Carlock, and Don Scardino.  These two men have produced some of the funniest moments in the history of this show.  Yet as stated narrowing down this list is almost impossible.  30 Rock is one of the funniest shows of all time.

Goodbye 30 Rock: A Look at Seven Great Seasons with 7 Great Guest Stars

In one week from tonight they shut out the lights  at studio 6H, and 30 Rock will go off the air for good.  While the show has past its prime, this is one of the most brilliant shows to grace the television landscape, and will be missed.  From Liz and her "Blurgh" moments to Jack channeling Tracey's father and assortment of his neighbors.  This modern Mary/Mr. Grant pairings is on of the best. In honor of the shows last week I will be paying tribute to the shows best guests, episodes, best cast moments, and much more!

While 30 Rock often became a rotation of special guest stars, and sometimes they cluttered up the screen, they were still one of the most important parts of the shows history.  Many of the best were those who played a significant role throughout the shows years, while there were one or two who only showed up once and left us laughing forever.  Here are the best guest stars:

Elaine Stritch as Colleen Donaghey

That ole broad Elaine Stritch has always made me laugh, but her stint as Jack's mom is probably one of the funniest she has ever had.  Her folksy racism mixed with her biting hatred of everything may be the reason Jack ended up the way he is, and I do not know whether to thank her, for the laughter of course, or be scarred.

Best Quote:"Tell him his mother's here. An' she loves him. But not in a queer way."

Will Arnett as Devon Banks

Jack's gay counterpart who is always at odds with him is one of my favorite guest stars, and Arnett plays Devon fabulously.  Devon has showed up multiple times throughout the year and whether there is homoerotic banter with Jack or him making fun of Liz for her manly qualities you can never go wrong with Devon.

Best Quote: "After the election, I could have had any ambassadorship that I wanted. Even to the world's gayest country: Ireland."

Dean Winters as Dennis Duffy

Liz's first boyfriend on the show, Dennis the beeper king is the polar opposite of who you would expect her to be with, and that's one of the best parts about this character.  Whether he is the subway hero, or causing a rift between Liz and Jenna, Winters was always one of the most fun guest actors on the show.

Best Quote “I was helicoptering into Zimbabwe when I thought I saw someone I knew. So I waved from the helicopter, which it turns out is a big no-no. So the rotor took my right hand clean off. And it turns out the person I was waving to was not my old football coach.”

Jon Hamm as Dr. Drew Baird

Liz found Dr. Drew (different one) threw getting his mail by mistake.  This doctor with perfect looks see Liz on the toilet, and deals with her accidentally roofying him, but still dates her.  The good doctor seemed to be the perfect man, but spent most of his time in the "bubble" of good looks. Who knew Don Draper was so funny, Tina Fey did.

Best Quote “I was helicoptering into Zimbabwe when I thought I saw someone I knew. So I waved from the helicopter, which it turns out is a big no-no. So the rotor took my right hand clean off. And it turns out the person I was waving to was not my old football coach.”

Sherri Shepherd as Angie Jordan

Tracey's wife Angie did not show up until later in the show (in the version of Ms. Shepherd) but that Queen of Jordan is one of the funniest recurring guest stars.  Angie's real housewives like show Queen of Jordan is one of the funniest episodes in the later years of the shows history, and she proves she is one funny lady.

Best Quote:  “I need to look good for my party and I refuse to wear anything my size or appropriate for my age.” 

Chris Parnell as Dr. Leo Spaceman

Chris Parnell was one of those recurring guest stars who did not get as much respect as he deserved.  Parnell's Dr. Spacemen was always there to bail out the gang in tricky medical situations helping fake DNA tests, or get Jenna skinny.  Parnell is one under rated straight man, but his comedic timing is off the charts.

Best Quote: “So, what can I help you with? I should start by saying that I can't personally help you conceive. Something happened to me while scuba diving.”


Carrie Fisher as Rosemary Howard

Who better than Liz's writing idol to make this list.  Carrie Fisher's Rosemary was sassy, and pathetic the way you would imagine an older Liz Lemon without Jack.  Fisher is the only person on this list who was only on the show once, but her appearance in the second season was one of the shows most memorable.

Best Quote"You’re just like me. You get up in the morning and smoke weed. You obsess about the Jamaican man across the hall… Help me, Liz Lemon, you’re my only hope!”

Honorable Mentions: Oprah,  John Slattery, Margaret Cho, and Salma Hayek

Women are Funny!

I hate to give this story any merit, but my own thoughts are inspired by the day to day events within the world of popular culture.  Today a story came out from the New York Post that Adam Carolla stated the following regarding working with women: 

"No. But they make you hire a certain number of chicks, and they're always the least funny on the writing staff. The reason why you know more funny dudes than funny chicks is that dudes are funnier than chicks. If my daughter has a mediocre sense of humor, I'm just gonna tell her, 'Be a staff writer for a sitcom. Because they'll have to hire you, they can't really fire you, and you don't have to produce that much. It'll be awesome."


He then compared working with a female comedy team, or hiring female comedy writers to picking a basketball team


"When you're picking a basketball team, you'll take the brother over the guy with the yarmulke. Why? Because you're playing the odds. When it comes to comedy, of course there's Sarah Silverman,Tina Fey, Kathy Griffin—super-funny chicks. But if you're playing the odds? No."


Man of you may or most likely may not remember this personality as one of the hosts of the Comedy Central television series The Man Show (1999-2004).  The series ran for five years and propelled host Jimmy Kimmel to a successful career as a late night host at ABC.  Carolla has landed on the D list along with the above mentioned Kathy Griffin, and has only starred in crappy reality television like Celebrity Apprentice.  The ironic thing is that I never found Carolla's show The Man Show funny; he is this crass person who uses fart and tits humor to get laughs, and while that may be funny to some people that brand of humor lacks the intellect many of female counterparts within the comedy world.


Carolla works within the realm of stereotypes, which can be funny when used wisely; he also equates them to truth working in the real world.  In his rationale Carolla uses an "affirmative action" type argument to state why female comedy writers exist.  I also have to disagree with his assertion that the "reason we know more funny dudes than chicks" is because comedy is still a boys club and fewer women are given the opportunity to prove their worth.  If you look at the history of funny women in television time after time they have proven their worth in front of the camera.


From Lucille Ball to Tina Fey women have proven to be some of the funniest and most memorable characters in the television landscape.  In the 1950s up until today people always cite Lucille Ball as one of the funniest comediennes of all time, and to be honest this distinction crosses the gender line.  Ball's distinct brand of humor was great; her physical humor stole the show.  As time went by especially in the 60s the boys club ruled, but the 70s and 80s stirred up a revolution.  Shows like The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Maude, Rhoda, Alice, One Day at a Time, 227, The Golden Girls, Designing Women, and Murphy Brown (all centering on women) proved that the women could compete with the men on the comedy front. While a half of these shows were created by men a few had female creators, and women writers like The Golden Girls, Designing Women, and Murphy Brown, which were all products of the mid to late 80s.  While these shows may not be up Carolla's alley (mainly because they don't involve girls on trampolines) there is no denying that these shows are regarded as some of the best and funniest shows of all time.

Carolla does not use the past to defend his comments rather current funny women and a slight to fact that Jewish men can't play sports.  Carolla has cited three working female comediennes whom he would not pick for his team, one being his former partner's (Kimmel) girlfriend Sarah Silverman, another being Kathy Griffin, and then Tina Fey.  While  Silverman and Griffin are incredibly polarizing I would argue both are funny than Carolla, and are more recognizable personalities than he is today.  I am going to run with his citation of Tina Fey, and the impressive comedy work she has created within the last 12 years or so.

Tina Fey was offered a writing position for Saturday Night Live in 1997 by head writer and former Second City pal Adam McKay.  Although Fey struggled in the beginning, partly because she had to navigate the boys club; she soon carved her own niche and put together some of the best female driven sketches the show had seen, and made the show a more diverse playing ground.  In 1999 Fey was offered the job as head writer for the show; she was in fact the first female head writer for Saturday Night Live.  If you compare her to Seth Meyers you can see where her talent outshines his by leaps and bounds (something she would never point out).  Fey was the head writer of the show for seven years and left at the end of 2006.

In the middle of her tenure as head writer she wrote one of the funniest films about young teenage girls in high entitled Mean Girls (2004).  Mean Girls starred Lindsay Lohan when she had talent, and created one of the funniest/meanest characters of all time, Regina George.  While the film was not a massive success at the box office there was a lot of traction with word of mouth when it was released on DVD and it gained a bit of a cult following, and can heard quoted by many women and gay men today.

Soon after Fey ended her run as head writer on SNL she jumped into another project, a television comedy entitled 30 Rock.  30 Rock is a show that takes place in an SNL like environment where Fey plays Liz Lemon the head writer of TGS.  Fey is great in the show, but of course Alec Baldwin steals the spotlight on screen.  Many people cite his performance as their favorite on the show, but in reality his character exists because of Fey.  Fey is a creator on the show, and writes many of the episodes; she has won Emmy awards for acting, writing and producing the show.  The show has won 3 Best Comedy Series Emmy Awards.  I think Fey is someone I would pick on my comedy legend team without a doubt.

Carolla's comments probably fall of deaf ears for many, but still perpetuate the stereotypes within the entertainment industry.  Throughout the last couple of years magazines, journalists, an bloggers keep declaring the years women.  I remember many declaring 2011 "the year of women" because of films like The Help, and Bridesmaids, more strong dramatic roles women and great comedic television roles for women like Amy Poehler in Parks and Recreation.  I remember a famous female winning an award (I forget which one) and being offended by this statement saying something to affect of women star in movies all the time this isn't an anomaly.  Whoever said this is correct, and it's not as though women have never been funny, nor have they never created anything funny, but at this point in history people are finally taking notice more (rightfully so) and people like Adam Carolla with no real career are just jealous.  Stop being a baby, and be the professed man you are, women have always been funny.

Movies that Put Life into Perspective: Mean Girls Edition

Last night I went with my friends to see a Midnight showing of the 2004 film Mean Girls at the Coolidge Corner Theater.  I have to say even though I own the film on DVD, watching the film on the big screen was an amazing feeling.  I did not see Mean Girls in theaters, but this was a chance for me to make up for that mistake.

While watching the film I thought about two things, well three. The first two had to deal with the quality of the film.  Tina Fey is a great writer, and I would love to see her write more films.  The dialogue is sharp and witty, and this is one of the most quotable films of the 2000s.  Rachel McAdams is brilliant as the evil teenage bully Regina George.  If this film were not part of that traditional high school/young adult genre her performance would been taken more seriously and she could/should have contended for the Best Supporting Actress category at film award shows that year.  This movie also made me think about my own high school experience, and if we actually ever escape the damaging world of high school when we grow up?

My high school experience was pretty different from Cady Herron.  I went to an all boy's military Christian high school in upstate New York.  The only similarities that existed between my high school and the one in the film were that the boys gossiped just as much as the girls in the film did, and there were a lot of bullies who thought they were hot shit.  The guys who were big men on campus were not known as the plastics though.  My high school had a lot of close minded individuals who felt as though they winners just because they played a sport, it was all boys high school, of course "masculinity" took over.

Sometimes I looks back on my high schools days and wish I had a more typical public school education.  I probably would have come out earlier, and been more comfortable with myself.  I think about this issue all of the time.  When I was in high school coming out was still pretty taboo, sure Ellen had come out, and there was Will and Grace, but there were still a lot of teenagers in the closet at the time, so I do not know if a different high school would have changed anything.  I also met some great friends in high school who were there for me, and still are no matter what.  I value my non traditional high school in some aspects.  I actually met a guy there who was my first, ironically.

I often leave the world of high school behind.  At the end of Mean Girls, like in any film, things are tied up in nice little bow.  Cady learns her lesson, Regina becomes a jock, and people start to realize that although they may have differences, they can work through them and accept people who are different.  I wish this happened more.  I think sometimes forget to leave the petty days of high school behind, and many people bring this to college (if they attend), and sometimes while in college they grow, but many people still do not learn.  The same happens when people go to work, they bring petty high school baggage with them.

This is a great film, and provides a lot of great context that made me think about my own high school experience.  I have a lot of conflicting emotions about high school, mainly because of gay identity.  There was nothing there for, and there is still nothing there for people who have questioned their orientation.  While I realize the school is Christian, the Christian thing to do would be to reach out and help people who are struggling.

I digress. Mean Girls, is one clever film, that has become a must watch film about high school. I love this film, it's just fetch, but I guess I should stop trying to make fetch happen.