[b:9401329374] originally posted by helpful information perhaps[/b:9401329374]
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NEED YOUR HELP!!
NY is the largest tv market in the country with over 6 million viewers and a strong GLBT community. Coverage there of the lesbian cliche's use in Buffy would be most welcome.
Sooo I wrote a letter to
Jesse Heiwa/Fruited Plain Radio
FruitedPlainRadio@yahoo.com and asked that they consider doing a show on GLBT
characters in TV/movies and how these media depictions effect perceptions of GLBT individuals by society.
I included a summary of the running list of news pieces on this topic (collected in a thread on this board) and pointed out that this topic was getting lots of play in the media now due to use of the lesbian cliche per W/T on buffy and use of the FemFem kiss as a ratings ploy.
They responded (below) and also gave me some other places to write.
Soooo I'm asking others here to write Jesse
Jesse Heiwa/Fruited Plain Radio
FruitedPlainRadio@yahoo.com and make a similar request for a show on this topic (give Jesse links to this board and the media pieces on this topic and ask FPR to do a story!)
AND
contact the additional stations OutFM on WBAI and do similarly!!
____
Here is Jesse's response to me:
thanks for your e-mail. Your idea is good, I will consider it, but also you might want to contact OutFM on WBAI (which I co-founded, but now is in different leadership hands), not sure if they check their e-mail, but you can write them at: OutFM c/o WBAI Radio, 120 Wall Street, 10th Floor, NYC, NY 10005 and the on-air number (they air Mondays from 11AM-12NOON) is 212-209-2900 and the office number for WBAI is 212-209-2800, there's also queer radio programs in Long Island, Central Jersey, etc..
Thanks for writing! And do check out Fruited Plain (will have more specifics toward the end of the month when the program launches on the internet), in the meantime contact us via this e-mail address and we're setting up a listserve.
Thanks for your interest,
Jesse Heiwa/Fruited Plain Radio
FruitedPlainRadio@yahoo.com ____
and here is what I wrote to them:
heard your radio show. It was very good.
Was wondering if perhaps you might consider doing a show on GLBT characters in TV/movies and how these media depictions effect perceptions of GLBT individuals by society.
There has been considerable discussion of this issue of late due to the use of the evil/dead lesbian cliche by shows like buffy the vampire slayer and use of fem fem kisses as ratings gimmics
examples:
www.bostonherald.com/Television; The Friday Rant
Boston Herald; Boston, Mass.; May 10, 2002; MARK PERIGARD;
Strip UPN's "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" of good writing, clever dialogue,
frightening menaces and believable characters and you are stuck with
this season. This week's episode was especially depressing, capped by
the murder of Tara (AMBER BENSON) in the closing moment, another crueltwist in a cold season. Over on FX, where the good seasons of "Buffy"
are repeated, the show's writers brag during commercial breaks about how
no character is safe on the show.
But examine that body count for a moment. The most significant character
deaths - Jenny, Calendar, Joyce Summers and now Tara - are all women.
The show's two gay characters, Tara and high school jock Larry, both
slain (ALYSON HANNIGAN's Willow does not count.
Creator JOSS WHEDON told the Herald last year that she is at best
bisexual) The show's black characters? Kendra, Mr Trick and oh yeah,
that guidance counselor who hung around for half an episode - all dead.
We knew that Buffy lived on a hellmouth. Who knew she lived in Klan
country?
____
www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/ar...241518.DTLby Tim Goodman
San Francisco Chronicle TV critic
tgoodman@sfchronicle.com"Sorry for the delayed rant -- it gets awfully busy during finale time
-- here's ho! ping another favorite series, "Buffy the Vampire Slayer,"
gets a lot better in a hurry next year. If the writers need to work out
personal issues, let us know in advance so we can watch "Gilmore Girls"
instead. Finale: subpar."
____
Sacramento News and Reviews
www.newsreview.com/issues...6/arts.aspArts Feature
Witch love spells death
Was the killing of Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer a bold plot move or
just another dead lesbian on TV?
By Jennifer Greenman
____
www.popmatters.com/tv/rev...yer2.shtml"I killed Tara": Desire and Death on Buffy
by Todd R. Ramlow
PopMatters Film and TV Critic
_____
letters to Salon
www.salon.com/ent/letters...index.html____
www.camprehoboth.com/issu...ntcamp.htmHeterosexuality Wins
Kristen Minor
I recently rented a copy of the movie The Children's Hour, a 1961 film
adaptation of a play where Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine play two
women who run a school. Long story short, MacLaine's character declares
her love for Hepburn's! and ends up killing herself in shame while
Hepburn hooks up with a tall and swarthy man.
The message is clear: Lesbianism causes pain, suffering, and death.
Heterosexuality wins.
Vito Russo, in his excellent work The Celluloid Closet, notes that
lesbian couples on film and television are generally divided into two
categories.
You have the Irredeemable Lesbian-generally the "butch" one. It goes
without saying that she is the seducer and the predator. Her target is
the Innocent. That would be the feminine one, who has been sucked into
the sinful glamour of lesbianism.
There are two endings to this story: Irredeemable is killed off or
suffers some other tragic fate, while Innocent goes into a murderous
rage or fall into the arms of a tall and swarthy man. It's either rage
against heterosexuality or heterosexuality being the rage. Such endings
ignore the existence of bisexuality, which is of course just a plot
device to crank up rat! ings. This week on the WB: A female lead kisses a
girl and then goes back to boys after a full ten minutes of confusion.
Tune in!
The evil, dead, and suffering lesbian cliche is a traditional subset of
the generic minority cliche, best summed up by "the black guy always
dies." For variation, he is also permitted to be a drug dealer or best
friend once in awhile.
Why are minorities evil beings who are made to suffer? Hatred. We're
being put in our place. We can scream until we are blue in the face
about how virtually every minority character is a ridiculous clich
without a meaningful role. The traditional response from the powers that
be is, "But they are there! What more do you uppity people want?"
We'd like to live, for starters.
The disturbing impression that I was left with after watching The
Children's Hour is that decades later little has changed. Exhibit A: The
television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer which just last week killed
off lesbian witch Tara (Irredeemable), sending her lover ! Willow (who has
dated men, making her the Innocent) to go on a murderous rampage. So
much for innocence. This was, incidentally, the episode where the two
characters were shown in bed naked together and kissed throughout the
episode. For those of you in the back that missed the point, here it is:
lesbian sex is a cardinal sin that leads to death. In the interest of
being inclusive, I should mention that gay men are hardly excluded from
this misery-my personal favorite homo boy offing was Sal Mineo in Rebel
Without A Cause, who spent the entire movie moony-eyed at James Dean.
Men, take note: crushes on James Dean will kill you.
Consider a few other recent films. Lost and Delirious ends with the
Irredeemable attempting to do a falcon impression off of a building.
Mullholland Drive has a lesbian killing off her ex that left her for a
man. Kissing Jessica Stein, currently in theaters, does an admirable job
of avoiding stereotypes up until ! the very end of the movie, where a
character says that the brea kup of her relationship with a woman was
caused by her inability to be "gay enough."
There you have it, folks-an invalidation of bisexuality where the
innocent jumps back to the boys.
Aside from Buffy other television shows that have featured lesbian death
and/or misery as of late include 24, ER, All My Children, and Boston
Public. The list of both television and movie evil, dead, and suffering
lesbians could go on for pages.
Those of you with a little free time can have great (okay, it's
depressing) fun with a marathon of lesbian death scenes. I would
recommend starting off with Basic Instinct, where Sharon Stone's
girlfriend is killed in a car crash and her ex-girlfriend is shot to
death. Stone herself is a cold-blooded killer who also ends up with a
man. This provides a nice two-in-one clich combo, with the added
bonus that every single queer woman in the film is deeply psychotic.
The marathon should end with a screening of The ! Fox, where the
Irredeemable lesbian is killed. By a tree. That falls between her legs.
With a death like that, how could her lover not go back to boys?
Researching this column has been a revelation. I realize now that I can
never be happy, nor will any of my relationships work out. I am a weak,
sick, and pathetic predator who deserves the pity of the heterosexual
world, which should make every effort to save and redeem me. The same
goes for all gay people.
Lesbianism causes pain, suffering, and death. We get it.
Kristen Minor is a member of the class of 2004 at Dartmouth College,
where she is a happy, well-adjusted, and avowed lesbian who stays away
from trees. She can be reached at
kristen@youth-guard.org.
____
www.lesbianation.com/arti...4&id=10414BUFFY FINALE, FINALLY
Lots of you have been writing in voicing your disappointment with the
direction the creators of Buffy the Vampire the Slayer decided to take
the show! this year. I can't help but agree with you. I was glad that dr
lloydhad written in to us with some warnings, so we would have some idea
of what to expect. I personally was shocked when they killed Tara; she
was the nicest character left.
Some readers feel that Tara and Willow were made out to be a lesbian
cliche. Stonhbr writes: "Tara was senselessly killed in front of her
lover (after they had recently made love and kissed) and Willow became
evil, eventually killing a man and turning on her friends. Thus, they
clearly sent the message that, yet again, lesbian
love+sex=death+evilness.
What was especially devastating about this development was that Willow
and Tara represented the only happy, relatively healthy lesbian
relationship on television and many gay viewers looked to them as role
models. Joss Whedon knew this, yet chose to act in a totally
irresponsible manner."
hilary clay adds: "Hollywood has a long standing history of either
killing their lesbian characters or turning them into villa! ins (a
detailed documentary of this is The Celluloid Closet) and for the first
time, this particular drama seemed to be avoiding that clich. Then on
the season 6 episode 19 ("Seeing Red," US airdate Tuesday, May 14, 2002)
one of the lesbian characters was shown being shot through the heart by
a stray bullet in front of her lover, mere minutes after being shown in
bed together, and the remaining character descended into 'dark majiks,'
eventually becoming a murderer and trying to end the world.
Although this story has been done before, it is particularly upsetting
that the producers of this show decided to do it to the only lasting gay
relationship on network television. When the producers took that step to
show a long-term lesbian relationship to millions of viewers, many of
them young, they were doing something good for these people. They were
giving a community sorely lacking in screen time someone to relate to.
They were telling peo! ple who didn't know any lesbians in their lives
that it was OK and normal. They were helping people overcome prejudice.
Now that they have taken this away in such a violent fashion, they have
taken something that was doing actual good in the world and torn it
down. Whatever the reasons, they weren't worth it. Most people will go
their entire lives without affecting so many people for the better, and
instead of embracing it and doing more good, they reduced it to nothing,
took it out in a body bag, no funeral, no remorse."
Thank you ladies for your heartfelt responses; I couldn't have said it
better myself.
______
From Sci-Fi Wire
www.scifi.com/scifiwire/a....30.fandomTara's Death Riles Buffy Fans
The season-ending story arc of UPN's Buffy the Vampire Slayer-in which
Tara (Amber Benson) dies and her lover, Willow (Alyson Hannigan), turns
evil-is prompting a backlash among fans who argue in part that the
finale undermined the series' otherwise positive portrayal of a lesbian
! relationship. Though many fans were dismayed at the loss of a crucial
character, still others saw the turn of events as a repudiation of one
of television's few realistic gay relationships.
"Devoted followers of Buffy the Vampire Slayer are left devastated by
the producers' ... decision to destroy what many have felt was a
wonderful portrayal of a loving, honest and natural long-term lesbian
relationship," wrote Florida gay rights advocate R. Zeke Fread on the
365gay.com Canadian Web site. "Especially because such a relationship as
that of Tara and Willow is rarely depicted on television programs."
More than 1,000 fans have signed a petition to resurrect Tara. Others
have written in protest to various Buffy fan sites, Salon magazine, the
Boston Herald and elsewhere.
"Examine that body count for a moment," the Herald wrote. "The most
significant character deaths-Jenny Calendar, Joyce Summers and now
Tara-are all women. The show's two ga! y characters, Tara and high school
jock Larry, both slain. (Aly son Hannigan's Willow does not count.
Creator Joss Whedon told the Herald last year that she is at best
bisexual.) The show's black characters? Kendra, Mr. Trick and, oh, yeah,
that guidance counselor who hung around for half an episode-all dead. We
knew Buffy lived on a hellmouth. Who knew she lived in Klan country?"
For his part, Whedon wrote on the official UPN Buffy posting board, The
Bronze, shortly after the finale aired: "I killed Tara. Some of you may
have been hurt by that. It's very unlikely it was more painful to you
than it was to me. I couldn't even discuss it in story meetings without
getting upset, physically. Which is why I knew it was the right thing to
do. Because stories, as I have so often said, are not about what we
WANT. And I knew some people would be angry with me for destroying the
only gay couple on the show, but the idea that I COULDN'T kill Tara
because she was gay is as offensive to me as the idea that I DID k! ill
her because she was gay. Willow's story was not about being gay. It was
about weakness, addiction, loss ... the way life hits you in the gut
right when you think you're back on your feet. The course of true love
never did run smooth, not on my show. (Only [NYPD Blue's] Dennis Franz
has suffered more than my characters.) I love Amber, and she knows it.
Eventually, this story will end for all of them. Hers ended sooner."
As for whether Whedon will bring back the character next season, he told
SCI FI Wire cryptically, "Tara will not be back. But Amber will."
______
www.365gay.com/opinion/Index.htmSpecial Feature
The Death of Tara Exposes Willow's Dark Side and Fans Outrage
by R. Zeke Fread
Devoted followers of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" are left devastated by
the producers of BVS decision to destroy, what many have felt was, a
wonderful portrayal of a loving, honest and natural long term lesbian
relationship. Especially, bec! ause such a relationship as that of Tara
and Willow' is rarely depicted on television programs.
Our gay youth, and all viewers of BVS, had for the past three years, the
rare opportunity to see two women, openly express their love for each
other as main characters in a television program. A devoted loving
couple, who were trusting, unselfish and protective of each other,
reflecting the many lesbian and gay long term relationships existing in
the real world, but, seldom acknowledged.
Young people were able to see this relationship was accepted by viewers,
both gay and straight alike, by the ever growing popularity of the
program. A message that was desperately needed for them to hear and see,
even though for some it may have been only an hour of drowning out the
thoughts of the anti-gay messages they are exposed daily.
BVS's storyline of an openly gay loving relationship, made contributions
toward promoting acceptance and tolerance, that could never be measured
by ratings alone.
They say all good! things must come to an end, but the fans of BVS are
not the least bit accepting of the end of Tara and Willow's long term
relationship.
It is not because, they don't believe good things do come to an end. It
is how producers choose to end Tara's and Willow's relationship that has
them disgusted and outraged.
Showing the couple in bed, suggesting they may have just made love, Tara
is shot and killed by a stray bullet. Willow seeing this happen right
before her eyes, becomes crazed, tracks down Tara's murder, tortures and
murders him, attempts to kill his associates, two of her friends and
attempts to end her pain by destroying the world.
Fans feel strongly this was not a fitting end for Tara and Willow's
relationship and have taken to the net to vent their anger. This may
sound like, "it's only a television show, what's the big deal?"
For BVS fans the big deal is, once again television producers are
falling back on the Dead/Evil Les! bian Clich: introducing gay
characters, only to kill them off or turn them in to villains.
In this case, BVS's producers have chosen to incorporate both, dead and
evil.
After watching the storyline with Tara and Willow go on for three years,
you become attached to these characters. We all have done the same
thing. We, as they, are not delusional and don't forget these are actors
portraying characters in a television. Nevertheless, we have developed a
relationship with them that went far beyond the character and viewer
relationship.
The storyline and the message that was being sent, acceptance of
same-sex couples, had touched the hearts of many of our gay youth. For
one hour a week for three years they were able to escape all the
negative things said about them. Then without warning, this special
message they looked so forward to seeing and hearing each week, was
abruptly stripped away from them. And, in the worst possible way one can
imagine.
I was not a fan or viewer of BVS and sadly had m! issed the opportunity to
see this positive portrayal of a same-sex couple. However, after reading
the many letters I have received on this matter, I can feel the great
disappointment and outrage of that the loyal fans of BVS are
experiencing. I am left asking the same question, I am sure they are,
what possible reason was there for destroying something that meant so
much to so many?
R. Zeke Fread is Director of the Tampa Bay Coalition a Florida GLBT
rights organization.
_____
www.PopMatters.comBUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
by Todd R. Ramlow
PopMatters Film and TV Critic
Ceci n'est ce pas une lesbianne
A famous painting by Rene Magritte is a realistic depiction of a tobacco
pipe with a declarative sentence written underneath: "Ceci n'est ce pas
une pipe." ("This is not a pipe.") Magritte's title for this painting?
"The Betrayal of Images." Following a long philosophical tradition of
investigating the status and politics! of representation and the real,
Magritte's pipe is not a pipe, but a painting of a pipe. And the
inscription encourages us to understand the painting as a critique of
dominant "ways of seeing," the constitution of "high" versus "low" art,
and the social values and political import of art.
Recently, I have experienced a reminder of just how dominant ideologies
promote certain understandings over all others in various responses to
my interrogation of lesbian desire and representation in the sixth
season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Several were angry accusations that
I had gotten it all wrong, that I was searching for a tempest in a
teapot. Among these, two points came up repeatedly: first, that I read
too deeply into what is "just" popular entertainment, that not
everything is politically motivated; and second, that my understanding
of how BVS uses witchcraft as a trope for lesbian desire was a load of
hogwash, even if some admit the show might have deployed such metaphors
at the start of Willow a! nd Tara's relationship.
To the first, I have never understood the argument that popular culture
is "just" entertainment or ephemera. It is manifestly much more than
that and does real cultural work. Certainly politicians, critics, and
scholars around the world have found in U.S. popular cultural products
(whether Hollywood films, television, McDonald's hamburgers, or
Coca-Cola) the epitome of neo-colonial exploitation and cultural
dominance. Furthermore, popular culture reflects and helps to reproduce
contemporary zeitgeists; this is how pop culture functions as an
apparatus of dominant ideology. The refusal to consider any social or
political import to popular culture demonstrates how ideology functions
through media to promote certain social and cultural values as
"natural," and to make particular political investments and
disseminations transparent.
As to the rejection of my understanding of the connection between
lesbianism and ! witchcraft on Buffy, I have never said that BVS's creator
or wr iters made a conscious (and consciously homophobic) decision to
directly cast lesbianism as social pathology and physical addiction. On
the contrary, I am quite sure that those involved in season six had no
such intentions, and probably weren't even aware of the implications of
what they were presenting in the changing relationship of Willow and
Tara. Instead, the fact that the show wraps up the Willow-Tara story arc
in addiction and death only proves to me exactly how dominant ideologies
(in this case homophobia and intolerance) function on the unconscious
level, for readers as well as creators.
Several writers tell me that witchcraft on BVS has nothing to do with
lesbianism, that they constitute parallel, not intersecting plot points.
How they could be parallel when the two primary witches and lesbians on
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