| 1976 |
 |
Pamela
Bellwood as Amy and Frances Lee McCain as Jenny in the movie
The War Widow (PBS) |
| 1977 |
 |
Barbara
Hershey as Ellen Lange, Diana Scarwid as Casey Walker, and
Salome Jens as Judge Kendis Winslow in the movie In the
Glitter Palace--also known as A Woman Accused
(NBC) |
| 1978 |
 |
Jane
Alexander and Gina Rowlands as lesbian mothers in the movie
A Question of Love (ABC) |
| 1982 |
 |
Patty
Duke as Helen and Sara Botsford as Angie in the movie By
Design (HBO) |
| 1983 |
 |
Donna Pescow as Dr. Lynn Carson on All My Children (ABC)
--First recurring or regular
lesbian character on daytime television |
| 1984 |
 |
Colleen
Dewhurst as a lesbian film editor in the movie The Glitter
Place (HBO) |
| 1986 |
 |
Mariette
Hartley* and Lynn Redgrave in the movie My Two Loves
(ABC) |
| 1987 |
 |
Antoinette Byron as Bonnie Harper in the sitcom Women
in Prison (Fox) |
| 1988 |
 |
Gail Strickland as Marily McGrath and Gina Hecht as her
lover Patti on ABC's Heartbeat (ABC)
--First recurring or regular
lesbian character on primetime television |
| 1989 |
 |
Lonette
McKee as Miss Loraine and Paula Kelly as her lover Tee in
The Women of Brewster's Place (ABC) |
| 1990 |
 |
Charolotte Coleman as teenager Jess in the movie Oranges
Are Not the Only Fruit (A&E)
|
| 1991 |
 |
Amanda Donohoe as C.J. Lamb* on L.A. Law
(NBC)
--First kiss between women on a primetime television
series (with
Michele Greene's
Abby Perkins)
--First
recurring or regular bisexual character on a primetime television
series
|
| 1992 |
 |
Jean
Smart as a serial killer in the movie Overkill: The
Aileen Wuornos Story (CBS) |
| Sandra
Bernhard as Nancy* and Morgan Fairchild as Marla on Roseanne
(ABC) |
| 1993 |
 |
Nora
Dunn as Norma Lear on Sisters (NBC) |
| Meredith
Baxter and Joanna Cassidy in the afterschool special Other
Mothers (CBS) |
1994 |
 |
Anita
Barone/Jane Sibbett as Ross's ex-wife Carol and Jessica Hecht
as her partner Susan on Friends
(NBC) --First lesbian characters
to be "married" on television in 1995
|
| Sara
Melson as Alison Lash on Beverly Hills 90210 (Fox)
|
| Sabrina
Lloyd in the movie More Than Friends: The Coming Out of
Heidi Leiter (HBO) |
1995 |
 |
Glenn
Close as General Margerethe Cammermeyer and Judy Davis as
her partner in the movie Serving in Silence: the Margarethe
Cammermeyer Story (NBC) |
Jenifer
Lewis asRosetta Reide and Cree Summmer as Danny Gates on Courthouse
(CBS)
--First recurring or regular African-American lesbian characters
on a television series |
1996 |
|
Lisa
Edelstein as Rhonda Roth and Kristin Datillo as Suzanne
on Relativity
(ABC)
--First kiss between lesbian characters
on television
|
|
| Robin
Bartlett as Debbie Buchman and Susan Plakson as Dr. Joan Golfinos
on Mad About You (ABC) |
| Paige
Turco and Lisa Darr as Officer Abby Sullivan and her partner
on NYPD Blue (NBC) |
| Jeri
Ryan as Valerie on Melrose Place (Fox) |
| Angela
Dohrmann as Stacy Bridges on Nash Bridges (CBS) |
Estelle
Parsons as Bev Harris, Roseanne's mother, on Roseanne
(ABC)
--First senior recurring or regular
lesbian character on a TV series |
| Valerie
Bertinelli as a lesbian mother in the movie Two Mothers
for Zachary (ABC) |
| Felicity
Huffman as Donna and Susan Gibney as Liz on Bedtime
(Showtime) |
| Diana
Scarward as Aunt Raylene in the movie Bastard Out of Carolina
(Showtime) |
| Kyra
Sedgewick and Helen Mirren in the movie Losing Chase
(Showtime) |
1997 |
 |
Ellen
Degeneres as Ellen Morgan on Ellen (ABC)
--First sitcom to revolve around a lesbian character
--First time lesbian sex was explicitly discussed on a primetime
television series |
| Lisa
Darr as Laurie Manning on Ellen
(ABC)
|
| JoNell
Kennedy as Maura McGee on Malcolm & Eddie |
| Ruta
Lee as Bev's girlfriend Joyce Levine on Roseanne (ABC) |
| 1998 |
 |
Angelina
Jolie as a supermodel in the movie
Gia (HBO) |
| 1999 |
|
Amber
Benson as Tara on Buffy the Vampire Slayer (WB) |
| Alley
Mills as Harrison's mom Robin John on Popular
(WB) |
| Christine
Belford as Steve's mother on Beverly Hills 90210 (Fox) |
|
LaTanya Richardson as Dorothy's mother's lover in Introducing
Dorothy Dandridge (HBO) |
2000
|
|
Alyson
Hannigan as Willow on Buffy the
Vampire Slayer (WB)
--Longest-running lesbian relationship on network television
(2.5 seasons, with Tara) |
| Laura
Innes as Dr. Kerry Weaver on ER
(NBC) |
| Elizabeth
Mitchell as Dr. Kim Legaspi on ER (NBC) |
| Ellen
Degeneres as Ellen Richmond on The Ellen Show (CBS) |
| Valerie
Ray Miller as Original Cindy
on Dark Angel (Fox) |
Eden
Riegel as teenager Bianca Montgomery on All
My Children (ABC)
--First
regular lesbian/bi high school character on daytime television
|
| Kelly
Overton as Bianca's friend Rain Wilkens on All My Children
(ABC) |
| Elizabeth
Harnois as Bianca's ex Sarah Livingston on All My Children
(ABC) |
Thea
Gill as Lindsay and Michelle Clunie as Melanie on Queer
as Folk (Showtime)
--First
lesbian sex scene on a TV series
--Longest running lesbian relationship on TV (3 seasons) |
| Ellen
Muth as teenager Jane in the Lifetime movie The
Truth About Jane (Lifetime) |
| Venessa
Redgrave, Ellen Degeneres, Sharon Stone, Michelle Williams,
Chloe Sevigny, Nia Long, Natasha Lyonne, and others as lesbians
in the movie If These Walls Could Talk 2 (Showtime) |
| Calista
Flockhart as Christina and Valeria Golino as Lilly in the
movie Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her
(Showtime) |
| Brittany
Murphy as a naval officer in the movie Common Ground
(Showtime) |
|
2001 |
|
Lisa
Vidal as Kerry's girlfriend Sandy
Lopez on ER (NBC)
--First recurring Latina lesbian character
on a television series |
| Elisabeth
Rohm as Serena Southerlyn
on Law and Order (NBC) |
| LaTanya
Richardson as Judge Attallah "Queenie" Sims on 100
Centre St. (A&E) |
| Brooke
Shields and Cherry Jones in the TV movie What Makes a
Family (Lifetime) |
| Yolonda
Ross as prison inmate Treasure in the movie Stranger Inside
(HBO) |
|
2002 |
|
Evan
Rachel Wood as Jessie and Micha Barton as her girlfriend
Katie on Once and Again
(ABC)
--First kiss between lesbian/bi teenagers on a television
series
--First
regular lesbian/bi high school character on a television
series
|
| Brittany
Daniel as Sophia* on That 80's Show (Fox) |
Sonja
Sohn as Det. Shakima Greggs on The
Wire (HBO)
--First regular asian-american lesbian
on TV (Sohn is half-Korean) |
| Bernadette
Peters and Rachel Ward in Bobbie's Girl (Showtime) |
| Elle
Macpherson* and Kate Capshaw* in A
Girl Thing (Showtime) |
2003 |
|
Mary
Page Keller as Commander Beth O'Neill on JAG
(CBS) |
| Iyari
Limon as Kennedy on Buffy
the Vampire Slayer (UPN)
--First lesbian
sex scene on network TV (with Willow) |
Olga
Sosnovska as Lena* on All My Children (ABC)
--First lesbian
kiss on daytime television (with Bianca) |
| Leslie
Hope* and Wendy Crewson in the movie An
Unexpected Love (Lifetime) |
| Rachael
Stirling as Nan, Keeley Hawes as Kitty, Anna Chancellor as
Diana, and Jodhi May as Florence in Tipping
the Velvet (BBC America) |
Terri
J. Vaughn as Eva on Soul Food
(Showtime)
--First lesbian character on an African-American
series |
| Roma
Maffia as Liz Winters on Nip/Tuck
(FX) |
| Kate
Mara as Vanessa on Nip/Tuck
(FX) |
| Marin
Hinkle as Judith* on Two
and a Half Men
(CBS) |
Lindsay
Price as Jane* on Coupling
(NBC) (canceled after only a few episodes)
--First Asian-American bisexual character
on television |
| Mary
McCormack as Maggie* and Talia Balsam as Gail on K
Street (HBO) |
| 2004 |
|
Most of the cast of The L Word,
including characters played by Jennifer
Beals, Mia Kirshner,
Laurel Holloman,
Katherine Moennig,
Karina Lombard,
Leisha Hailey,*and
Erin Daniels
(Showtime)
--First series on TV about lesbian/bisexual
women
--First recurring lesbian character played by a Native American
woman (Lombard) on a television series |
| Katie
Finneran as Sharon on Wonderfalls
(Fox) (canceled after only 4 episodes) |
| Mena
Suvari as Edie on Six Feet
Under (HBO) |
| Krista
Kalmus as Charlie* and Makika Dominczky as Erika* on North
Shore (FOX) |
| Natalie
Distler as Colleen* on Rescue
Me (FX) |
| Olivia
Wilde as Alex* on The O.C.
(Fox) |
| Daniella
Alonso as Anna* on One Tree
Hill (WB) |
| 2005 |
|
Laura Benanti as Billie* on Starved
(FX) |
Cathy
Janeen Doe as Simone on Passions
(NBC)
--First African American lesbian/bi
character on daytime TV |
| Paula
Marshall as Regina on Out
of Practice (CBS) |
| Mandy
Musgrave as Ashley* and Gabrielle Christian as Spencer on
South of Nowhere
(N) |
