This week we watched the documentary Funny Ladies, which dove into the original female comedians and how they were expected to ‘be funny’ and gain public appreciation. They mostly did this by acting silly and playing down their looks. Iconic comedians such as Lucille Ball, Mary Tyler Moore and Carol Burnett took down stereotypes of needing to look and act a certain way to gain respect as female television comedians. The show, I Love Lucy Lucile Ball starred her as well as her real-life husband, Desi Arnaz who both captured viewers with their comedic take on married life. It was such a hit that it won 5 Emmys during its 6 year span on television. Carol Burnett hosted her own variety show on CBS, The Carol Burnett Show which televised talented guests who did stand-up, sang and re-enacted popular television scenes. She was most known for being humorous and witty, drawing in audience members of all kinds.

Betty White described early comedians as simply “just funny-silly as hell.”

The Mary Tyler Moore show came on later and took an even more progressive approach to comedy from a female perspective. The show’s protagonist, Tyler-Moore supported herself and never really ‘settled down’. She was just funny on her own- as well as hardworking, ambitious and talented at her job as an evening news producer. This targeted female audiences with a strong relatable component as well, breaking gender roles.

We also viewed the episode Hush from the series, Buffy The Vampire Slayer which I found to the plot of to be rather interesting (as well as a little eerie). In the episode, everyone wakes up to find their voices gone- stolen by zombie like creatures. The students need to get creative with their means of communication and even do this with strategically leaving around $10 bills for each other to find. The episode had a lot of screaming, zombies and hidden messages. Overall, I thought it was a really interesting take on an ‘apocalyptic’ plot line.

My question(s) for the class are- How do you think the Coronavirus Pandemic will affect current film and T.V. shows? (If it all). Will a deadly plague be (a little more normalized) and not as scary in the context of a horror film?

I probably watched all of Buffy when I was 16 and I loved it. I would say I’m a feminist so I loved when TV shows had strong female leads. Buffy was the first badass female leads in TV and I think a lot of girls related to her and looked up to her. Before on TV even if the lead was female like ‘I Love Lucy’ there were still a strong male lead to support her along with her character itself not being a strong female. While Buffy had love interest during the show she never relied on them for the plot to move forward.

Moving on the ‘Hush’ I think it is a good mirror to what is going on in today’s world. At the start of everyone’s voices being gone we see the liquor store still open and busy. Just like how even though New York had a full shut down liquor stores were demined essential and were still high traffic areas. We then pan over to see a man selling whiteboards already trying to profit off of a change in time, just like how we saw a bunch of people making masks and trying to sell them. Them losing their voices is a lot like having to wear masks now, and very much of what our current world is like for deaf people. This just goes to show how realist tv shows can be and how Buffy really connected with people because it understood how humans think.

I shortly wanted to bring up how Buffy influenced the LGBTQ+ community. When 16 year old me first started watching Buffy I didn’t know it defined a lot of lesbians coming of age. So when I told my friends that’s what I was watching I got asked if I was a lesbian because of the stigma Buffy has. Buffy is a badass and seeing that on a screen I’m sure could show someone coming to age what they are attractive too and it was really the first show that was know for that.

The idea of having an episode with very little talking and the plot based around no talking is quite interesting. I’m not sure if Buffy was the first one but since Buffy a lot of drama and thriller tv shows tend to have an episode that takes away that comfort of talking. Us as humans rely so much on our voice to communicate with each other that when it is taken away it is terrifying. I mean a universal nightmare humans have is not being able to scream loud enough.

As a TV show Buffy the Vampire Slay was the first of many things for a tv show. They showed that a strong female lead can be interesting and stay on the air for many seasons. It help open the eyes for a lot of lgbtq+ kids coming of age. It also started a a genre of tv shows with a coming of age horror show.

Television is one of the most essential products that is kept in a household. Everywhere you go you see at least one t.v for example, in a bar, a store, a barber shop and so on. A television provides one of the most convenient ways to spread information worldwide! Television is the most popular mass media platform that people of all ages use. Since the beginning of the television era people loved it and its convenience.

Television not only for an informational platform but for entertainment as well. When bored at home what do most people do? People usually resort to watching t.v. For example, during the quarinitine due to Covid-19 people turned to television to be updated on what going on in the world. Also since there was nothing much to do it was a source of entertainment to watch movies, shows, documentaries and more. And for those who are more advanced there t.v would provide other sources of entertainment such as YouTube.

Not only is television used for both informational and entertainment purposes, it is also an very influential. A film called Pioneers of Television there was a show called Funny Ladies that changed everything for television industry as well as for women. This show emphasized on the fact that women can do anything a man can do. The message was to show that women have what it takes and the women’s domineer within the show expressed that. Television was the platform used to show that message and that started to shift the way women were looked upon.

Television is something that will never go extinct, it is way too useful and convenient in our era. Television is by far one of the best things invented for the human race.

The greatest thing about television and media is that helps you find yourself in this world and understand that certain things can be an achievable reality. It helps you gain a perspective on life and develop a sense of self beyond what you are accustomed to. One of the greatest things we have seen since the 60s is the increasing amount of women and people of color on tv.

In a society that still exhibits inequality amongst its people, lack of representation is one of the biggest issues we can face. While many people do not see the full picture and importance of having more representation on the television it comes down to giving someone a perspective and a chance at what they deserve and what is realistically achievable. It gives people a voice and a chance to spread that voice and inspire.

One of the videos we watched this week was from Pioneers of Television: Funny Ladies and it talked about just this. Since the 60s we have seen the image of women in our country change and morph into what it always should have been. It proved to the entire country that women are just as capable as men in every single way shape or form and should be looked at no different.

Another video we were tasked with watching this week was Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Hush. This episode basically had a group of ghouls called “The Gentleman” steal everyone’s voices completely, leaving Buffy and the gang to save everyone silently. This was my first experience with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and it was definitely a good one. As expected, everyone completely freaked out at first. As they began to accept being silent, they started communicating physically and assumptively and ultimately figured out how to save everyone’s voices and defeat “The Gentleman”.

It really goes to show the creativity and our ability to adapt and overcome almost any situation thrown at us as long as we work together.

Television is one of the largest And most popular forms of mass media we have in the modern world. Ever since the television was invented, people went crazy for it. Think about it, when you’re bored what do you do? I know personally I either find a new show to watch or continue one I’ve been watching already. Even back in the day whenever you have down time you’d sit and relax and watch some TV. Television has a huge impact on us ever since we were children. Most of our childhoods were spend in from of the TV. If you were irritating you’re poor parents they just sat you in front of the TV to watch a children’s show. Watching these children’s shows made a big imprint on us because of how impressionable children are. That’s why it started being rumored that TV rots the brain, because of kids sitting there staring into a screen like as if they were zombies.

This week we were assigned to watch a film from “Pioneers of Television” called “Funny Ladies”. This show was revolutionary for the television industry and for women everywhere. For the first time ever, women were starring on hit television shows and started having payable jobs. It shifted the whole view of The typical women’s roles In general. Women were seen as stars and icons and began to be recognized as a talented human being rather than an object. These early television shows also helped shape the structure of the story in television today. Early television used to have stories going from episode to episode, now, shows are categorized by season And story’s can last over a few seasons long. Soon the television industry had to shift over time to more cinematic shows to compete with movies coming out. The show “Dallas” that aired in the late 70s used a now very common tactic to real viewers into their shows, a cliff hanger. One of these most suspenseful things a show could do is leave you, for as long as they want, not knowing what happened after a dramatic event. Who Shot J.R. Was the big question for this episode of “Dallas”. Today it still holds the record for the most Live viewed episode of a television show ever with a grand total of over 83 million people watching when it aired.

Do you think a show today could possibly top the record that “Dallas” holds with viewers? Do you usually watch some tv shows when you’re bored? How impactful was “Funny Ladies” to you?

You ever turn on the T.V and just randomly flip through the channels just to see what’s on? Me, neither because I don’t have cable but as a kid growing up in the 2000s I used to get bored very quickly so, I would flip through my TV for hours on end, and doing this helped morphed what shows I would consume. Why is this important, you’re probably asking yourself… well growing up I never seen characters that were like me unless they were following a racist Indian stereotype ie Apu from the Simpsons, Raj from Big Bang Theory, Baljeet from Phineas and Ferb, etc. T.V in the 2000s and early 2010s feels very outdated nowadays with a lack of representation of certain ethnic groups and very harsh language (especially towards the LGBT+ community).

This isn’t anything new but after watching the Pioneers of Television episode, Funny Ladies in class, it blew my mind that women comics were so groundbreaking for it’s because now in 2020 we get shows like Tuca and Bertie, Broad City, and Unbreakable Kimmy Shmidt, shows that wouldn’t be here without I Love Lucy. I feel like representation in television has gotten a lot better as you get gems like Master of Naan which features an Indian main character who isn’t the brain of the cast or owns a 7/11 but we still have a long way to go as shows like to whitewash characters (meaning that they use a white actor for a character who wasn’t meant to be white i.e Iron Fist on Netflix) or use an all-white cast with little diversity. 

One show that has one of the most diverse casts is Steven Universe which features characters with many different ethnic backgrounds and most of the cast is a part of the LGBT+. This show much like I Love Lucy has ushered an era of inclusivity and diversity within T.V as shows have tried to copy or take inspiration for example Adventure Time, Craig of the Creek, and Big Mouths. Just 10 years ago it was unheard of to have just 1 openly gay cartoon character on T.V but now with the vast amount of TV shows going to Netflix or Hulu they can take much more creative liberties with their work to give representation that these groups greatly deserved. 

One question I would like to pass off to the reader is that do you believe that we should have more T.V shows that include more representation or do you believe that doing that will sacrifice the artist’s vision if it’s forced. I believe that it shouldn’t be forced because as an artist, you can’t force art, you have to just let it happen.       

Since the beginning of television, modern entertainment was seen as an all-men world as most men held many positions of directors, anchors, actors, producers, etc. Until the 1960s, when television began to broadcast real-world events and the tragic death of John F. Kennedy, the world sought escapism on tv. During the late 60s, shows began to pop up, such as I Dream of Jeannie and Bewitched. “Both shows typified the situation comedy, or sitcom, a comedy genre featuring a recurring cast of characters who resolve zany situations based on their everyday lives.” (Understanding Media and culture)

Consequently, with the surfacing of comedy shows, it also opened the door to women become wildly prevalent in newer programming. This week’s viewing, we start off looking into the Pioneers of Television: Funny Ladies, where these women broke through the double standards that women couldn’t be beautiful and funny at the same time. 

In this 50 minutes episode, viewers receive a glimpse of the pioneers who were the real daredevil that paved the way for future television comedians such as Tiffany Haddish, Mindy Kaling, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and many more to run today. This episode follows Joan Rivers, the late Phyllis Diller, Lucille BBall’s Mary Tyler Moore, Betty White, Maria Gibbs, and Carol Burnett. They all earned their path as the “funny girl” as they found their space as tv comedians. Interestingly, finding a space where women never existed. Comedy is a relatable form of expression. Comedians open up about most of their lives as they make jokes that many individuals will most likely relate too. Many of the women in the episode spoke about various producers having no hope in women comedians. It was thought to be taboo and extreme for women to joke about pregnancy, personal life, etc. 

Nevertheless, because of these women forcing and creating their own spaces as the “funny girl,” they also exceeded viewership rating and became household names.  

More recent shows, such as ” Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” starred Sarah Michelle Gellar and premiered its first episode in 1997 on The WB network. Making itself another show that had a leading actress that is a woman with layers. Layers consist of a variety of emotions, genres, and especially comedic aspects. Our second screen was on the episode Hush, which asked the question…  

What is effective communication?

At the beginning of the act, Buffy and her friends enter a room, and no one is listening. Talking over one another, complicating, becoming frustrated, and as we see, everyone’s emotions are becoming frustrated and irritable. A strange disfigured monster appears and casts a spell on the entire town, which causes everyone to loses their voice. With the new challenge of no one having their voice, Buffy and the team must find an effective way to communicate and defeat this villain.

Besides the fact that Buffy is an actress that came after an ancestor of past “funny girls,” this episode provides a clear shift of how cinematic shows have become in the past decades.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Hush is a “silent show,” which uses scores to enhance the emotions and questions each character may express. They provide actors with an opportunity to go outside their physical lines and experiment with effective communication with the cast and viewers. Watching Pioneers of Television and Buffy, The Vampire Slayer gave a beautiful glimpse of how far television has come among the years.

Question: Other than the “funny girl,” what are other spaces women have conquered, and how may that relate to you? 

Post-modernism is reaction against the intellectual assumption and values of the modern period. It’s also described at denial of the general philosophical viewpoints that were taken for granted in the 18^th century (enlightenment). Some of these viewpoints are, the logical independent of human beings such as their minds, their cultures and their social practice. Postmodernists terminate the idea as a kind of native realism. Postmodern denials the viewpoint of descriptive and explanatory statements of scientists and historians, they say that there is no such thing as the truth.

 Why can’t teachers use post-modern popular culture television shows like Buffy, The Simpsons, Desperate Housewives.  These shows are not only contemporarily appropriate for variety of cultural and socio-political, but they are also funny and interesting way for people to not experiencing different cultures. People could be more aware of feminism, patriarchy, and sexuality, this is important to learn before being out on your own. You can be more aware to other preferences and for yourself. Schools were not letting students learn about the variety of cultures but later, the Buffy the Vampire Slayer is now studied across many schools especially universities worldwide.  Buffy describes a world where the nation of an old-style superhero that is overthrown. The gender characters are challenged, and the females are the “heroes” that wears the honored symbol of a third-wave feminist. The “power” is place upon a woman which is an important to view as a woman.  Before 1848 men had the power and women were the maids, they would have the power they wouldn’t be the main characters. So, viewing Buffy that focuses on women in power is a life changer.

The film called the Pioneers of television: Funny Ladies, gave a life story of many successful women that made a change to shows. Mary Tyler Moore always wanted to express herself, her life began in a dance studio, her dreams faced a major obstacle in Hollywood. She started out with small acting roles, but it didn’t bring her fame. There was a show called “The Dick Van Dyke Show” Moore thought she couldn’t do it, she felt very sorry for herself until one of her friends talking some sense into her. Right away she got that role. Marla Gibbs you can get laughing while making a point, she started her life as small timer on The Jeffersons, then she became a starring role on television. She became the first African American women to have a creative control over her own sitcom. Carol Bunett was a nobody, until she wrote a song about John Foster Dulles then she became a known person. With comedies you must tell the truth, that’s what comedies are all about. These women opened doors for women everywhere, no matter what they never broke up the purpose. Together they refined the role of women in comedy. The budge for each show was a $1.95, that’s crazy to think about, today its millions for a movie or shows.

For me, watching this film the little clips made me laugh and I wish I was there back in the day to experience watching these shows. women made a change in society which changed the world forever.

Like last week, the discussion about television and it’s value in our society continues. This week the idea of TV shows being used for not only entertainment but also as education. We’ve all been through the struggle of having to read Shakespeare and other texts that, let’s be honest, are a bit outdated. As stated in the reading about using Buffy the Vampire Slayer as a post-modern teaching tool, a lot of the texts we are mandated to consume in school are mostly written by and about white straight cisgender men. Using post modern text, more specifically television, provides a more diverse and up to date views and stories. They can include women, people of color, the LGBT+ community, etc. all of which could be included in a text format, but aren’t commonly represented, and even if they are in books, it’s not as evident. Television also provides a way of learning that’s a bit different than reading a book. Even if you aren’t a fan of a show, it’s still somewhat easy to follow along and get the gist. If you don’t like a book you’re reading, it’s easy to get side tracked, not take in any information, or zone out. It also presents more ways to digest the information you’re given. The episode Hush from Buffy the Vampire Slayer is a great example of how many ways you can take in information.

One advantage of television is how many ways it can relay information. As previously stated, Buffy shows this well. Books are very basic, you read the words on the page, and sometimes, you create an image in your mind to associate with what the text is saying. TV allows you to see the character’s actions, social cues, emotions, etc. You can also listen to what they’re saying, how they’re saying it, when they say it, etc. Lastly, you could also still be reading when watching a show, but even that has much more context and information than just text, you can see how it’s written, where, why, and so on. Overall, TV shows provide much more context and information to the audience, you could see how helpful that would be in a learning environment, especially if you’re trying to analyze situations like most literature classes tend to do. This would also make learning a bit more accessible. Not everyone is able to take information in the same way as a lot of people are, text is a very hard medium of language to get emotion from sometimes, and with out the context of emotion, a lot of situations can be misinterpreted greatly.

Television being present in classrooms also provides the opportunity to provide a more diverse education. It could start conversations about things like social issues such as racism and sexism that otherwise might not have even been thought about. Buffy provides a strong female lead who takes charge but also deals with human issues. Most books used in education don’t have anything like this, representation of all groups is important whether you are a part of that group or not. Television also helped to give a platform to many female comedians who otherwise might not have been able to find the success they did in the industry without it. Some of the comedians, discussing matters that are important to them, were frowned upon because it’s something people thought should not be talked about. This media is important in so many ways regarding diversity and education, and amplifying the voices of people who in other media’s don’t have them.

My question regarding the content this week is about TV being used for education. Do you think more classrooms will implement shows like Buffy into their class content or do you think this will remain as a rarity within schools?

From the Pioneers of Television Called Funny Ladies to the episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer called Hush women in TV have moved to comical figures to saviors. The funny women in Funny Ladies are hilarious. The film did not need to introduce me to Lucille Ball and I Love Lucy. I have watched every single episode of these 6 season in addition to The Lucy Show. I Love Lucy is my dad’s favorite show. Lucy’s Italian movie with her stomping on grapes and the episode where she and her husband Ricky change jobs and she goes to a chocolate factory are two of the funniest shows I have ever seen on TV. I have probably seen those episodes ten times each. If I ever have children, I suspect that they will watch these episodes as well.

Lucille Ball’s work has and will undoubtedly live on for generations to come. I suspect that some of the other women in this documentary will also live on for generations. Carol Burnett, Mary Tyler Moore, Betty White, and Joan RIvers will have lasting appeal. They not only made their mark in comedy but they paved the way for other women such as Tina Fey and Margaret Cho. What amazed me were the sheer number of women who were successful comedians in the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s. These women started an era that predated women’s liberation and activist like Gloria Steinem. They were the true revolutionaries. They were writers, actors, directors and studio heads in an era where this was unheard of. They were true pioneers.

Fast forward to late 1990s and we have woman as vampire slayer. As they say “You’ve come along way baby.” Buffy is the hero of the Hush episode she is the person with brains and strength. She is a superhero. She was a superhero long before D.C came up with the film Wonder Women, which was considered groundbreaking. Buffy doesn’t look like a superhero which is a deceit. She is short, thin and petite, yet she is strong and resilient.

In the episode of Hush the characters have their voice taken away by the “Gentlemen.” “The episode is largely silent. Each of the characters have to find a way to communicate. They use white boards, hand gestures, mouth movements and props. The fact that they can’t talk adds additional scare moments to the episode. Not only is it scary, it is amusing. It is a different amusing than I Love Lucy, but there are many of the same facial movements, hand gestures and props as comedy.

“In addition to being one of the scariest episodes of TV ever produced, ‘Hush’ showcases everything that makes ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer’ one of the best shows of all time,” wrote Jacob Hall in Screen Crush. Hall ranked Hush in the top ten episodes of the series. Indeed writing an episode without words these days is a challenge, and making it both scary and funny is exceptional.