Subject: GLAAD Atlanta Aug 7
From: <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 07 Sep 94 08:15:11 EDT

GLAAD/Atlanta News
August 7, 1994
by Carl Lange

HERE'S THE STORY OF A DYKE NAMED BRADY . . . 
by AL KIELWASSER, GLAAD/SFBA

"Here's the story of a lovely lady, who was bringing up three very lovely
girls . . . ."  For well over a decade, the familiar Brady Bunch refrain has
chimed daily from television sets around the globe.  Now, the campy 70's hit
series is being made into a Hollywood feature film and one of those "lovely
girls" might also be a lovely lesbian.
 
The Paramount film is currently in production and writers Jim Berg and Stan
Zimmerman (creators of Roseanne's infamous "lesbian kiss" episode) have
suggested that the character of Marcia Brady will become involved with
another woman.  In the film, Marcia's best friend is Nicole, an out lesbian.
 Marcia's friend develops a crush on the eldest Brady daughter and, according
to Stan Zimmerman, "Nicole gets what she's after in the end." 
 
Of course, it could be argued that not Marcia, but Jan Brady would have been
the more logical choice for a lesbian love interest.  In the original series,
after all, it was Jan who demonstrated the most pronounced queer qualities:
 intelligence, sincerity, and a passion for justice (she was, after all, a
member an oppressed community -- middle children).  
 
But seriously, a queer Brady -- any queer Brady -- could powerfully subvert
the historical heterosexism of television's "family" sit-coms.  A lesbian
Marcia would explode the mythic heterosexuality of The Brady Bunch, radiating
a uniquely  affirmative message throughout the popular culture.  Such
 cultural transformations  -- whether humorous or serious -- are essential to
combating homophobia, which is largely maintained through the media of film
and television.      
 
Send feedback to Stan Zimmerman and Jim Berg, Brady Bunch movie, c/o
Paramount Studios, 5555 Melrose Avenue, Hollywood CA 90038, tel.
213-956-4900.

PEOPLE WHO READ PEOPLE
by AL KIELWASSER, GLAAD/SFBA

Readers of "People Weekly" have been treated to an improved, more
lesbian-positive magazine.  Most recently (Sept. 5), the popular magazine's
"Couples" section featured a two-page spread on singer Melissa Etheridge and
her lover Julie Cypher.  "Her Grammy is nice," the magazine notes, but
Etheridge's lover is her "greatest prize."
 
"A House in Harmony," written by Peter Castro and John Griffiths, profiles
Etheridge and Cypher in both words and photos.  The feature deals
nonchalantly with the couple's blossoming relationship and peeks -- without
sensationalism -- into the personal histories of each woman.
 
Make sure that the magazine's letters-to-the-editor page is filled with more
than just hate mail from panicky homophobes.  Send your letter to Jason
McManus, Editor-in-Chief, People Weekly, Time & Life Building, Rockefeller
Center, New York, NY, 10020.

We welcome and thank you for your contributions to this column.  Permission
is granted to distribute and/or reproduce this column in part or in its
entirety provided attribution is made to GLAAD/Atlanta and Al Kielwasser,
GLAAD/SFBA when appropriate.  For more information about GLAAD/Atlanta write
PO Box 55111, Atlanta, GA 30308; phone 404-876-1398; fax 404-876-4051;
internet: [email-masked].  This column is a product of the Gay & Lesbian
Alliance Against Defamation/Atlanta, Incorporated. 

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