feminist musings on nostalgic offerings

Although, as I've said, I really love things from an earlier era, I also can't help but think about certain cultural implications. I've already mentioned, for example, that What's My Line? frequently had female contestants with jobs that were traditionally held by men. I suppose you could say that this broke the stereotype, but I think the fact that these women were presented as out-of-the-ordinary (and therefore a challenge for the panelists to guess) meant that these stereotypes were reinforced.

I Love Lucy is a classic comedy and there are certain episodes that I can watch repeatedly for the simple pleasure of the comic artistry and timing. But. It still astounds me that such a skewed view of women was so accepted. Women are not only gossipy and too talkative, but they don't know how to manage money, they can't drive, and they lie about their weight and age. Although Lucy and Ethel occasionally get the better of their husbands, it is, much more often, the other way round. In I Love Lucy land, the men are men and the women are...girls. "Yes, sir," says Lucy in response to husband Ricky when he reprimands her for overspending her household allowance. Yes, allowance.

To be continued....