Stephen Colbert Creates a Different Lie

We all know Stephen Colbert as the guy who pretended to be a Republican pundit on Comedy Central's The Colbert Report. Some of us, of the more liberal persuasion, were comforted by the warmth of the satire. But that security blanket is gone and the honest persona has entered the scene, the real Stephen Colbert as brought about by The Late Show With Stephen Colber. However I think we were lucky to find that he's still funny and personable, I know I was excited to watch this new Stephen. But, to mimic the dramatic affect of Colbert's former character, we're still being lied to.

Back in August, Glamour magazine ran an article, written by Colbert and some of his writers, promising to make his new show a place where women would have a presence. It was called "Stephen Colbert Shares Why He Thinks Women Should Be in Charge of Everything". Colbert wrote impassioned about his quest to make sure The Late Show would be a feminist creative space, one that late night television specifically was lacking. Here are some choice sections I'll share:

"While there are many talented female comedians out there, right now the world of late-night is a bit of a sausagefest."

"To be honest, sometimes I wonder whether the world would be a better place if women were in charge. It would be pretty easy to make that happen. Simply tell the men of the world that you're trying to start a campfire. While we're all arguing with one another about proper kindling placement and whether using lighter fluid is cheating,* women can just quietly start getting stuff done."

"Point is, I'm here for you, and that means I'm going to do my best to create a Late Show that not only appeals to women but also celebrates their voices."

Women everywhere, including myself, rejoiced! "Yes" I thought, "Stephen Colbert has follow through, this will be the first late night show that gets ahead of that criticism and we'll see a balance in late night comedy"

Lol.

The Late Show With Stephen Colbert has exactly 2 female writers. There are 17 male writers. And then an additional 0 women. Stephen Colbert has yet again feigned sincerity to bring attention to an issue. Except this time instead of playing a trick old evil Republican old white dudes he's fooling women everywhere, especially female comedians. And just like the members of the GOP, I feel let down to realize he's not actually on our side.

 

Mad Men

Mad Men is a AMC show created by Mathew Weiner back in 2007. Since its air back in 07, the show has been very popular, winning countless awards including 4 Golden Globes and 15 Emmy's. My Personal view on the show corresponds with the general public; I love it.

The show takes place in New York City and takes its views into a 1960's advertisement agency called "Sterling Cooper" which is a fictional company designed for the show. 

 The show follows many characters through countless different conflicts but its main character Don Draper, played by Jon Hamm  is in my opinion the most interesting. He is in the first season a business man working for the agency, but quickly gets promoted to partner by the end of the first season. His character is a very intelligent and unorthodox salesmen that does not like loosing.

Don Draper also is victim to treating women poorly like many men of this time period did. Women's rights were more limited at this point in time and it is strongly reflected in the show. the Women characters are all viewed as inferior to the men of the show. We get a direct view of the differences in the Draper household. Don's wife Betty,  played by January Jones, doesn't have any power unless she consults with Don first. If she does something with out asking him first then he often gets mad. The other female characters in the show are also viewed as a lesser to men.

While the women in Mad Men don't have much power in the show, their character often have the largest impact on the viewers. In my opinion the women in the show are extremely powerful because, as young adult, I have never known a world where women weren't equal to men (or at least considered to be). Women in our time period have all the same rights and also occupy many of the same jobs as men which would been outrageous to think of back in the 1960's.

Mad Men in my opinion is one of the best shows currently on TV. It is a very unique story isn't over-dramatic. I find it to be the perfect mix between a soap opera and a drama. If you don't watch Mad Men, I highly recommend you start. 

Don't Get Married #Bridezilla

Having watched the entirety of the first season of Bridezillas, I feel qualified to say I know what true bat sh*t crazy behavior looks like--excuse my french here, but if you've watched it you know I'm putting it mildly! 

To those underprivileged humans out there who haven't had the pleasure to binge on the undeniably entertaining nonsense this show provides for the world, I will take the next couple lines to quickly summarize what you've been missing.

Essentially, the brides are unbearable and insane, and their husbands-to-be are typically a hybrid between a defenseless baby bird and a neutered cat. You know, real studs. And though you may think I'm being a little too harsh on these men...allow me to get my Lawyer on and present you with some evidence:

I hope to dear God you chose not to watch that whole thing. Really, ten seconds are enough to get the point! Bridezillas are insane and somehow they're still getting married. 

 

  

The Women of Wall Street

Everyone's seen The Wolf of Wall Street. And if you haven't, you need to get on that. Seriously, watch it. It's a miracle you've been able to hold any sort of conversation with people since its release. Just kidding, I saw it about a week ago. But I mean, look at this face:

Leonardo DiCaprio in "The Wolf of Wall Street"

Anyway, if you have heard of it, you're aware of the certain misogynistic themes that run rampant throughout the entire 180 minutes of the film. But Meghan, it's a biographical film! It's supposed to be funny! They have to stay true to the characters! And yes, I do admit that there's something outrageous and alluring that sets The Wolf of Wall Street apart from the other hundreds of thousands of "Men-Are-Powerful, Women-Are-Sex-Objects" films, but it's interesting to think about how the movie would've actually went if the roles were reversed.

And that's where Los Angeles writer, Nicole Donadio, comes in. A couple of weeks ago, she released a video called "The Women of Wall Street", a parody of the original The Wolf of Wall Street trailer. Line for line, and almost exactly shot for shot, she recreated the trailer, but with a twist. All of the roles switched genders. The concept is more impressive than the actual production of the video, but in my opinion, it was very well executed and edited. First, here's the original trailer:

And here's Donadio's version:

At it's worst, it's a silly parody of a blockbuster film. At it's best, it's a nod to the inequality of women in not only the film industry, but the corporate world as well. What I found extremely interesting were the surprisingly negative comments on the Youtube page. Commenters treated the word and the concept of "feminism" in a very critical light. Although "feminism" has always been viewed as a dirty word (known to many as "the F-word"), I found it alarming how many people took the time to express their hatred for not just the video, but the feminist ideals behind it. Regardless, I'm all for these kinds of videos starting discussions and bringing to the surface some of the issues of gender that are mostly shoved under the rug. Props to Donadio, and I'm excited to see if this sparks any more critical parodies.

And in case any of you are interested, here's a link to a well-written critique on The Wolf of Wall Street from a feminist stand point. Because you know, feminism.

The misconceptions of today’s male television characters

Since the very first television shows, it was obvious that men were all portrayed the same. They were simple, one-dimensional characters that always knew the right thing to do, the right thing to say. Men were the ones to turn to in a crisis. Whether it was a son who needed help with his homework or a town who needed help with a criminal, the star of the show always seemed to know what to do. Many people argue that, today, men are still portrayed as simple, easily understandable characters who merely have different characteristics than their counterparts from fifty or sixty years ago. That’s certainly not the case. The way men are portrayed in television shows has slowly evolved over the past half-century. They undoubtedly have become more complex throughout this evolution. The journey began in the 1960s with The Dick Van Dyke Show.

The Dick Van Dyke Show—aired 1961-1966—starred lovable US Army sergeant turned television writer, Rob Petrie. Petrie had the ability to be both wildly spontaneous while staying professionally disciplined. He was a loving father and husband. He went from holding a top position in the army to having a prestigious position in the television industry, so he was both masculine and intelligent. He was spontaneous as well as disciplined, so he was fun while also serious. After all this, he still had the energy to go home every single day and show his wife and kids that he loved them. Rob Petrie was basically the perfect man. He was masculine, intelligent, professional, fun, and loving. Could anyone ask for a better father or husband? Realistically, no, but Petrie also isn’t a realistic person. He’s simply too perfect. He rarely loses his cool or falls off the pedestal viewers put him on. This makes him an extremely one-dimensional character. He never strays from what viewers expect from him. In the 1960s, men were portrayed on television as what society’s ideal men looked and acted like. Rob Petrie was that ideal man.

The Cosby Show—aired 1984-1992—was based on the fictional doctor and father of five, Cliff Huxtable. Huxtable was an all-around eccentric and silly person with almost everyone he interacted with, especially his family. He was a kind-hearted man and a dedicated father and husband with an extremely strong sense of humor. Like a good father should do, he always makes sure his kids try their hardest. Whether it’s education—an especially important thing in his eyes—or any other part of life, Huxtable always pushes his children to succeed. Now, here’s where Cliff Huxtable differs from Petrie. While Huxtable’s main characteristics dictate that he be a loving, gentle person, his secondary, less present characteristics give him the ability to occasionally veer from what viewers are used to seeing from him. For example, Huxtable will most of the time support his children in the kindest way he can, but when any of them do something he sees as foolish, he lets them have it. He doesn’t let his anger loose or anything like that, but he never hesitated to call his son, Theo, an idiot when he said he was going to drop out of school. He would occasionally have behavior like this with his children’s friends as well—people who he hardly even knew. Cliff Huxtable was a first-class, but much more realistic television father compared to those who came before him. He was, indeed, one of the first multi-dimensional men on television.

Modern Family—aired 2009-present—is centered around the lives of three intertwined families, one of which is run by cool dad, Phil Dunphy. Dunphy is a high-end real-estate agent whose only need in life is his family. There’s nothing he loves more than his wife and three kids. While his family gives him happiness, he gives them laughs and love. Anyone who watches the show knows that Dunphy is really just a big kid at heart, which is probably why he connects with his youngest child, Luke, so easily. Between he and his wife, Dunphy is also known as the cool parent. He uses a strategy—which usually doesn’t work, by the way—which he dubbed “peerenting,” to discipline his kids. He acts like a parent and talks like a peer. Seems like a normal, silly dad, right? Wrong. The reason why Phil Dunphy is one of the most amazing male characters television has ever seen is due to the fact that he combines the authenticity of Ray Barone (Everybody Loves Raymond) and the complexity of Tony Soprano (The Sopranos). While Phil Dunphy is much more childish and silly than most real-life men, it’s impossible to argue that he’s not a regular guy. Most problems he encounters—a mindless son, a stuck-up daughter, an unaccepting father-in-law, a stressful job—are ones that the majority of men have been forced to deal with themselves. To add to his overall realness, Dunphy also shows the complexity of real-life men. On the outside, Phil Dunphy is a calm, collected individual who just wants to have fun as much of the time as he can. The truth: Dunphy is panicking on the inside much of the time. Phil Dunphy acts as if he worries about nothing, but really, lots of things get to him pretty easily. For example, when his father-in-law, Jay, doesn’t ask for his help with some kind of project, Dunphy immediately begins worrying that he has done something wrong to bother Jay. It’s very possible that Modern Family’s Phil Dunphy is one of the best-portrayed men to ever appear in a television show.

It’s been argued for quite some time, now, that men on television have slowly become more and more simplistic and idiotic. On the contrary, the exact opposite has happened. Over the past fifty years, male characters have slowly evolved into the most complex characters in all of television. Starting in the 1960s and ending in the 2010s, men have developed from simple, one-dimensional characters into complicated, multi-dimensional societal figures. It would be absurd to say the portrayal of men has slowly declined over the past half-century. Not only have male characters become more intricate, but they have also become more realistic when compared to real-life men. Not only does this make the characters more easily relatable, but it also diminishes the awful message that television used to force-feed viewers that told men they had to be perfect in every aspect of their lives. Beginning with Rob Petrie and ending with Phil Dunphy, television has greatly improved its overall portrayal of men.

The Doorway

This Sunday season 6 of TV's brilliantly mod drama Mad Men premiered.  I'm a bit of a fan.  If by "bit of a fan" includes owning 3 seasons on DVD and dressing up as Don Draper for halloween.  I think AMC's 4 time Emmy winner is the smartest, sleekest, and best TV show ever.  Taking place in the 1960's Mad Men follows the advertising world of New York City's Madison Ave.

The show's creator Matthew Weiner didn't just suddenly appear with a hit drama, he served as producer and writer on the HBO hit The Sopranos for 2 years prior to taking his talents to AMC in 1960.  The stories are elegantly told, with brilliant cinematography and a cast of characters that really make you wonder who is a good guy and who is bad.

One of the things I love about this show is it's historical accuracy and it's depiction of a totally different world than we live in today.  Other shows attempting to set their drama in the 60's era (The Playboy Club and Pan Am) seemed to use minor details to convince audiences of the world around them such as hair, clothes and cars.  Mad Men gives the look and the feel that you have literally time traveled for an hour and stepped into the world of social change and cultural phenomenas.   One of my favorite scenes from season 1 that really shows you how the world has changed is during a birthday party for one of Don's children.  A child who is attending the party is running around the house playing and accidentally knocks over a drink.  A man who is not the child's father immediately slaps the boy across the face as punishment. The real father of the boy then comes over and asks the child to apologize to the man who slapped him.  He then scolds him and tells him to run along and says "and tell your mother to come clean this up."

The show brings up very topical issues but puts them in a completely different context and shows the struggle with these issues from a different decade.  It deals with African-American rights and equality in the workplace.  Women's rights and a woman's struggle to enter into a career path.  It discusses divorce, homosexuality, single parenting, and adultery.  But it shows these topics how the 1960's handled them. I really feel like it's a history lesson every week when I watch.

The characters are what really keep the show going, and all actors give equally compelling performances.  Overall between the 6 acting categories at the Emmy's the cast of Mad Men has earned 25 acting nominations yet has not won a single one.  Jon Hamm and John Slattery are always nominated, as well as continuous nominations for Christina Hendricks and Elizabeth Moss.  Although the show it's self has won Best Drama Series 4 years in a row (Only to be beaten my Homeland just his year) It's actors have not gotten the full recognition they deserve.

I will continue to watch Mad Men and hope to show my children this utterly phenomenal show because I think I've learned more about the 60's watching an episode of this show, than I ever did in my high school US History class.