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2008 AfterEllen Visibility Awards: Final Voting Now Open!
Last month we asked you to help us choose the nominees for our Annual AfterEllen.com Visibility Awards, to honor the best and worst of lesbian and bi visibility in entertainment for the year (see previous award winners here: 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004). A few notes before you vote: In the interest of expediency, only nominees with a high percentage of the vote were included, so the number of finalists varies by category from between two and five (for example, there was no sense including more than The L Word and South of Nowhere in the "Best Scripted TV Series on Cable" category, since almost all the nominations were for those two shows). We received many entries for shows/books/movies that did not air/publish/release in 2008 (most notably, Exes & Ohs) and these nominations were discarded, since they did not meet the qualifications. Finally, the "best fiction" category was split into two separate categories — novels and graphic novels — and the "best non-fiction" question is not included in the finalist round at all, since almost all the nominations were for the same non-fiction book. (Which one? Tune in on Dec. 18 to find out!) One last reminder: these finalists were culled from your nominations, not editorially chosen. So if your favorite show/musician/person etc. didn't make the cut, don't blame us! (But don't worry, you'll give you plenty of editorial choices to quibble with when we reveal the winners of the Visibility Awards categories that we didn't put up to a vote, like best and worst lesbian-themed TV episodes). Now go forth and vote! (Just once!)
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Wow Gro
..but off course!
Yeah, Gro is the best!!
Can't wait for the tougher games durint the Championship :) Right now the Norvegian team knocks everybody to the ground :D
So Gro&Katja!!!! And let me give a shout out to ....Hospital Central!!!
the main round
The next 3 match are gonna be tough but of course Norway gonna WIN!!!
HEIA NORGE!
"Los Hombres de Paco"
Yup ^_^
'Paco's Men'. Even though I don't speak Spanish, I love the show (subtitled, of course).
-Spewed forth by Auddikin Jaywalker
Which is why it was in the
Which is why it was in the non-American category :)
http://www.femslashfanfiction.com/ - Femslash Fanfiction
Thanks
How Can I
I know!
Seriously, that was the hardest one for me to choose an answer! And why the H was Maeve Quinlan not on that list? Huh??? I knew I should have sent in a list of nominations.
I strongly voted for...
I strongly voted for...
3WAY!! I love every single one of those ladies in there. Listen, it made me love Maeve, which was amazing considering I started watching even though I hated Paula.
and also,
WATER LILIES! I really liked this movie, it was so complex and really reminded me of Summer of Love. I could actually say overall it was better than Summer of Love (even though I still love Emily Blunt)
norway
Gro and Katja ftw
hm...
am i the only one who chose lindsey lohan & samantha ronson as the best couple of the year?
You only live once!
Quote:am i the only one who
Nope, I did too. :)
It's not just you
I voted for them too.They
Brooke Smith
Straight Ally is quite the packed category, but I voted for the amazing Brooke Smith. She is always so classy and was so enthusiastic about her character's storyline (and even actively encouraged them making Erica gay way before it ever happened). Her performance during the leaves revelation scene was truly moving and real, and resonated with so many. And then she was abruptly axed for doing such a fantastic job. She deserves some love! I strongly encourage voting for her!
Who else feels that a choice between TLW and SON is no choice at all? I refuse to vote for them for best anything!
I agree about Brooke Smith.
Yeah, besides I figured as
Yeah, besides I figured as great as people like JBeals and Tina Fey are (they rock), they already know we totally love and appreciate them. Brooke? Probably not so much. Spread the love, she deserves some!
I'll stop pushing my Brooke agenda now, promise. :)
She was awesome on GA but
She was awesome on GA but Keith Olbermann got my vote for his wonderful comment on Prop 8.
Bless you, Keith. <3
I voted Keith too
Brooke has indicated in
Uh Huh Her and Jennifer
Best Of Luck To All The Nominees!
www.myspace.com/lunakiss7
All of htem are number one for me. Jennifier Beals continues to support us. Brooke Smith deserves the win as well. I had to narrow down to Keith Olbermann b/c a straight gay came out to support us in public with his heart on his sleeve. You can't get any better than that. I had to vote for Rachel Maddow as the woman of the year. This is her year. Wanda is great too. Can we have people outside the acting/comedian industry win some of these categories? It's only fair. Sometimes we vote base on popularity. We need to vote on what they"actually" contribute to especially with the category woman of the year. News is entertainment too(It depends on the newsstation).
Passing For Black is a really good book. I cross my fingers hope it wins. So is Dirty Girls on Top. Tough choices.
Enough of my rant. I'm an equal opportunitist. Best luck to all the nominees.
wow
I cant believe Lena Headey isnt in the 'best straight ally' category! wow, there are a couple others i cant believe so many people listed! lol, I guess 'you are what you eat' right?
Im shocked at Sue Perkins as she hasnt been around for a while and hasnt really done anything lately. It would have been nice to see the UK's version of Rachel Maddow; Clare Balding on here also...well she's not that political lol
Great opportunity to list our favourite women of the community though :)
Take care
Sue was on a celebrity
Sue was on a celebrity reality TV show called Maestro this year (around September). She won, and got to conduct an orchestra live at the Proms.
http://www.femslashfanfiction.com/ - Femslash Fanfiction
Yay, Sue!
yayyyyyyyyyyyy I love Sue,
yayyyyyyyyyyyy I love Sue, i voted for her to be on the list! And yes as soembody already replied Sue was on Maestro and from the second week on she was clearly the best!! her simpsons piece was amazing, that week she got over double whaat the lowest guy got and was the only person 'safe' sitting alone in the balcony haha.. she's gotten way smilier and charismatic, i watched her on CBigB2 on youtube a little while ago and while i wanted to like her i didnt so much.
anyways Sue has been EVERYWHERE in my opinion simply because i barely wtatched any TV over the summer but 2 things i did watch were Maestro and SuperSizers go.. (which i thought wasnt so historiocal but actyually stuff keeps coming up in my history degree from thr show and i only caught 2 of them!)
she's so funy onf both shows. there was one big when evaluating the conductors one woman said something loosely along the lines of "you need to loosen up, zen stones, candles, rose petal bath whatever" and Sue was like "is that advice or an invitation?" eee! now i wana watch it again, was so funny cus you could see the woman realiseding what sue had said and grinning. Or the time when her mentor (who was amazing also and like a male asian Sue-clone) was explainig the bg behind a piece and saying how this girl felt havingt o tell her parents she was in love with this guy and her heart thumping and Sue was like "there are worse things to have to tell you parents" again, watching him get it was funny! me and my mum laughed anyhoo!
ahhh, i had such a temporary sue obsession before starting this year of uni, lack of her on tv made me forget,.. i really hope she wins, i think Gro might she's so popular on here tho i don't really know her, but if sue gets some runner up prize? i just really want her to be informed of it if she does win, i think her confidence and smiliness in general so went up recently!
ahi wrote so much! and bad typing too, but thats due to cramped desk
edit: okay to add even more... I realised Sue Perkins is like a female David Tennant! same slim pinstripe suits, short dark hair which changes so much, awesome glasses, charisma, geeky/adorkable?, good at everything, smart, make me go fangirly and eeee!
anyone agree?
On The Supersizers Go...
On The Supersizers Go I think they were eating doughnuts (seventies ep.) and Sue said something along the lines of 'yeah, i'll have one of those - more my thing'. Haha. I love how she seems so much more comfortable with herself.
I think Gro will probably win as she's got a pretty big fanbase here but it's so nice to see Sue on the list. I'm going to send her a myspace message to let her know - the first time she responded to a message I sent on myspace I can't explain how excited I was. Hahaha.
I just think she's so fantastic. :P
haha i heard about that, i
haha i heard about that, i missed it though :(
omgsh you should message her, tell me if she replies!
I second you
Keith's my ally
Because he taught Rachel how to use a TelePrompTer. ;)
ETA: In case I was being too vague (or ya didn't wanna click the link to the Advocate article)
The Prop. 8 commentary isn't the only thing Keith Olbermann did. As modest as he might be about it, Keith is the one that had Rachel Maddow guest host his show, and suggested that she had host quality.
Of course, I'm not trying to take credit away from Rachel, because obviously if she had sucked she wouldn't have gotten her own show. She was able to carry the show while Keith was out and that was basically her audition. But she wouldn't have had the shot without Keith. And we now have a very visible real life openly gay woman hosting her own news show...the first to do so.
So...that's my logic. Helping to increase the visibility of lesbian characters in fiction TV...or helping increase the visibility of an actual gay woman in non-fiction TV.
good point!
Got my votes in
Got my votes in :D.
----Jasmeen's Signature---
Jill's new vlog at Shewired.com
http://shewired.com/FeaturedWriter.cfm?ID=18
Rose Rollins is super hot.
Isn't Queen Latifah a super duper dyke?
How could you make me choose
I ended up voting for Melissa because I think UHH will get more votes from other people. =P
RACHEL MADDOW--- for
I'm kind of gutted
that Out of the Blue wasn't on this for the non-American catagories! The shows awesome and so positive towards the lesbian couple on it!
Anyway, Brooke Smith is the best straight ally! She got my vote.
Brooke Smith for Best Ally
I respect the contributions that Tina Fey, Jennifer Beals and Keith Olbermann have made and--no doubt--will continue to make to increasing the visibility of our community, but my vote had to go to Brooke Smith....and I urge others to make the same choice.
Here's my logic: first, in terms of visibility, Brooke Smith's turn as Dr. Erica Hahn probably reached the broadest audience. Grey's Anatomy, much to my chagrin now, boasts higher ratings than 30 Rock, The L Word and Countdown...so from a purely numerial standpoint, Brooke Smith did the most to increase lesbian visibility.
One can only hope that the day after Brooke Smith's Emmy worthy coming out speech, it was what those people were talking about....that it was the conversation around the water cooler at work and across the kitchen table at home. Maybe, just maybe, the fact that Brooke Smith played a lesbian on one of the most watched shows on television means that parents of gay and lesbian children are finally getting a glimpse into the emotional process of coming out and self-acceptance...and I think our community is better for that discussion having being initiated.
But that's only a small part of it...
The bottom line is: she got fired for playing a lesbian. She. Got. Fired.
Remember, Brooke Smith didn't want to do this, initially. She didn't want to perpetuate the stereotype of all strong, aggressive women being lesbians (think Kerry Weaver on ER). But she did it--convinced by the stories she heard from women who'd come out later in life. She embraced the role (even moving her family to LA) and embraced our community and delivered what I think was a historic moment for lesbian visibility when she came out.
And for her Emmy-worthy efforts, she was fired.
I know that people might be reticent to give acknowledgement to Grey's Anatomy, lest it be construed as support for the mess that Shonda Rhimes and ABC subsequently made of the Callie-Erica storyline, but this is award is just for Brooke. A small thank you for taking on a role that meant so much to a community that rarely gets seen or portrayed with such depth. It probably won't get her her job back, but at least it's something...
Anyway, that's my rationale. All the candidates are great, but I do hope you'll consider voting for Brooke Smith.
Word.
You said it all perfectly! This category should go to Brooke HANDS DOWN. She was not afraid to take this huge risk, and she did it all for the fans and this community and how was she repaid?! She was fired. Inhumanely and unjustly and it's disgusting. We have to show her how much it meant to us, that she was willing to risk so much so we could have some representation. She's brilliant, beautiful and brave and 2008 is Brooke's year for Best Straight Ally.I've Never Watched Grey's Anatomy
I agree with you, pecola,
I agree with you, pecola, but Brooke did want to do this all along. I think she said at one point she agreed with Shonda that it was a little cliche for a woman like Erica to be gay (obviously Ms. Rhimes changed her mind, as she is wont to do), but she was always on board with the idea. She's spoken about pushing with Sandra Oh for something to possibly happen between their characters since they played lovers in that play, she made a point to tell the producers she was totally open to playing gay, and she was even talking to the likes of Michael Ausiello about the idea that Erica would make an 'awesome lesbian' right when she was first brought on as a regular. She pushed for it. She put herself out there and was happy to do so, then as you stated, gave a wonderful performance that really captured the emotions of that sexuality awakening many of us can relate to, made that visible to a very large audience, and then got fired. Even after that travesty she's still very supportive what with going to the Trevor Project benefit that someone mentioned (actually, that and the Milk premiere are two of the only three, I think, places she's been seen since the new broke. She's been very quiet mostly. Making a bit of a statement maybe?)
I'm rambling again. In summation, I think Brooke is fab and deserving. :)
Double Word
Just to add to that in case you haven't read this:
http://www.usmagazine.com/news/fired-greys-anatomy-star-no-hard-feelings
She says she'd be willing to play gay again despite everything that's happened! If that's not class I don't know what is! Best. Straight. Ally. Ever.
Small note, but Marianne
Small note, but Marianne Steinbrecher and Sheilla Castro aren't in an out relationship. Nothing was confirmed by anyone...
I voted for Anne Will and Miriam Meckel in that category.
Thanks
Thanks for the heads up! It's often very difficult for us to determine whether couples are out when they're not American (since the rules of reporting are different in other countries, it's hard to know what's a credible source vs. a tabloid, and sometimes there's a language barrier) and so many readers nominated them for "out couple of the year" I just assumed they were out, and didn't double-check. That's what I get for making assumptions! :)
I've now removed them from the list.
LINDSAY AND SAMANTHA
Water Lilies!
I hope that others vote for Water Lilies as best movie (US Festival Release) as well as me... I am totally in love with it- the characters are so memorable, the story really makes an impact and and visually it is stunningly beautiful. The acting is great as well.... and the director Céline Sciamma is a young out lesbian. Judging from the comments on the review here on AE a while back, a lot of others here loved it as well. So fingers crossed....
It would also be great to see an interview with the gorgeous Adéle Haenel (Floriane in the film) or Céline Sciamma here on AE in the future.... (*batting eyelashes at Sarah Warn*)
I voted LiRo as best couple, as they have been clearly the most influential publicly out lesbian couple of the decade, never mind 2008. Also, my sister is a rabid Maman fan.
Hip To The Beat, Mommie-O!
...Maman!? Haha. ...I voted
...Maman!? Haha.
...I voted for Water Lilies! Go froggies, go!
"All of her hair was cut off and she was totally weird- and now I guess she's on crack."
Lesbian/Bi Couple of the Year (American)?
Is an art, like everything else,
I do it exceptionally well.
Sylvia Plath - Lady Lazarus
AGREED.
i voted for them too :)
Ellen and Portia
Ellen and Portia of course got my vote. They married this year and it was the highest profile gay wedding there has ever been. I can't see how anyone else could be chosen over that. Being a cute couple doesn't really compare, IMO.
_________
http://www.liveleak.com/user/Harpy
I guess you're right... it