Many
people remember
the LA
Law kiss
in 1992 between bisexual attorney C.J. Lamb and her bi-curious
colleague, and the Roseanne-Mariel Hemingway kiss on Roseanne
in 1994 (which was actually shown from the back to block the actual
kiss). But few remember that the first real lesbian kiss
(i.e. a kiss between two lesbian or bisexual women) on television
occurred in the short-lived drama Relativity on January
11, 1997--the series that also offered the first recurring lesbian
character who was a central part of the cast.
The
ABC series was produced by thirtysomething masterminds
Zwick and Herskovitz (who also produced Once
and Again and My So-Called Life, two other shows
with pioneering gay characters.) The story follows a twenty-something
heterosexual couple, Isabelle (played by Kimberly Williams of
Father of the Bride and now According to Jim)
and Leo (played by David Conrad), and the lives and loves of their
assorted friends and adult siblings, including Leo's longtime
friend Doug (played by the always excellent Adam Goldberg).
Although
Leo's lesbian sister Rhonda was introduced in
the beginning of the series, her sexuality was not featured
in any of the early episodes except one, in which Isabelle
and Rhonda commiserate with each other over their recent respective
breakups. Rhonda is played by Lisa Edelstein, who has starred
or guest-starred in several television shows and movies, most
recently Leap of Faith and Felicity and movies
like Keeping the Faith and What Women Want.
Rhonda's love interest is Suzanne, played by Kristin Dattilo who
currently stars in Showtime's The Chris Isaak Show (and
was Janie in the Aerosmith video for "Janie's Got a Gun").
The
kiss didn't happen until the 13th episode, named "The Day
the Earth Moved" because the theme of the episode revolves
around earthquakes, sex, and life-changing decisions. The episode
weaves several threads involving multiple characters in and out
of each other in a humorous and thoughtful way, and a storyline
which follows Rhonda and Suzanne's introduction, their first date
(albeit an unusual one), and their first kiss. (For those who
didn't see the episode, I've provided an episode recap below.)
Relativity
was ground-breaking not only because of the kiss, but
for the natural and almost casual way it portrayed
the lesbian characters and their relationship with each other,
as well as their relationships with other characters on the
show. At the time, it was one of the first shows ever to treat
its lesbian characters just like the other (heterosexual) characters
on the show, with no attempt to sensationalize their relationship
or the kiss. The lesbian characters are very likable, and they
are treated with affection and supported by the other characters--for
once, no one has any "issues" with their sexuality
(besides Isabelle's initial surprise at her friend's sexual
orientation, since Isabelle had only known her to date men previously).
Also
unusual was the show's casual use of the words "lesbian"
and "dyke" (in a positive way) in conversation among
the characters--another television first (and unfortunately
still not that common today).
This
episode, like the series, was also a consistent mix of funny,
sweet, and serious, with complex characters and an entertaining
and realistic storyline.
The
series only lasted a few more episodes after this one before
being cancelled by ABC due to low ratings--despite
considerable critical acclaim--bringing the final
total to 17 episodes. None of the subsequent episodes featured
the relationship between two women except the last one, in
which Leo and Rhonda's grandfather has a heart-attack, and
Suzanne accompanies Rhonda to the hospital, where she is introduced
by Rhonda to the doctor as "my lover."
Conservative
Christians
and other critics were up in arms when this episode
debuted. Tim Wildmon, Vice-President of the American Family
Association (AFA) issued a press release at the time denouncing
the kiss on Relativity and criticizing the series
for taking television "where it has never gone before"
by showing "caressing, nuzzling and passionate, open-mouthed
kissing" between two women. It went on to say:
The
television industry continues to push the homosexual agenda
with increasing fervency, with regular homosexual characters,
same-sex marriages, and now passionate lesbian kissing scenes.
And they won't stop their assault on morality until American
society cries 'Uncle!' and fully accepts the homosexual
lifestyle as legitimate.
Little
did they know that things were about to get much worse,
for only five months later Ellen Degeneres and her eponymous
sitcom character would come out with a bang (along with
Jorja Fox's character on ER
around the same time, and a few other characters on other
shows within the same year) and not only would Ellen kiss
a woman on television (more than once), but she would raise
the level of public awareness around the issue of how lesbians
were, or were not, represented on television.
Almost
five years later, the number of lesbian and bisexual
television characters has significantly increased--current
examples include Willow on Buffy,
Dr. Weaver and firefighter Sandy Lopez on ER,
the lesbian couple on Queer as Folk, Detective Greggs
on The Wire, various women
on MTV's The Real World, the upcoming series The
L Word, and more one-episode guest-star lesbian plots
than anyone can count, including Denise Richards on Spin
City and Winona Ryder on Friends.
Lesbian
kissing is still not de rigueur on television, however--and
although several shows have depicted women in bed together,
that's not a frequent occurrence yet either.
But
both events are common enough that they no longer make
any media headlines when they happen, and they don't generally
impact advertising support in a negative way--developments for
which we have shows early shows like Relativity to
thank.
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