Homosexuals on TV and the silver screen (tv show, movies, Friends)

[Neuling]

Why is it that so many TV programs and movies have the usual gay character, but hardly any feature lesbian characters? Just wondering because it is so obvious...

[Rubi3]

My guess is it's a male dominated business with several gay men present and involved in that business, so the inclination is to cater to males.

[TamaraSavannah]

Let's see, lesbians in film and TV in no particular order.

Well, there was "Better than Chocolate" & "Love and Human Remains" of course. And let us not forget about what Holly said about professionalism of working with ladies in "Body Double". In the book, "From Russia With Love", Klebb was a lesbian or at least bi, but I don't know if that made it into the movie.

I do believe Karen (Vanessa Angel) in Melrose Place was bi or a lesbian. In "Bounty Hunters", the protected offered to "BB", free of charge. Theo (Zeta Jones) suggested that she was bi in "The Haunting".

And, of course, there was Willow and Tara in "Buffy, the Vampire Slayer".

Over the decades, I would say that they are there.

[Cape Cod Todd]

I live near a small town that becomes a gay mecca in the Summer and my observations have been that many gay men are fun characters. There are gay guys that have muscles others that are thin and others that are fat and hairy, there are ones that dress up and wear makeup and other ones go all out and dress up like women.
Many of these guys seem to be happy.
On the flip side are the lesbian women some of which get all butched up with tattoos, multiple piercings and they dress like a grease monkey. There are others that wear khakis and walk around with their hands in their pockets.

There is nothing wrong with any of these people, they are just living their lives the way they want.

Simply put a gay man on a television show is a character and a gay woman is more subtle.

Would the show "Will and Grace" have been as funny if it were a straight guy and 2 lesbians?

[kevxu]

Originally Posted by Rubi3

My guess is it's a male dominated business with several gay men present and involved in that business, so the inclination is to cater to males.

I suspect it goes deeper into the culture than that. American society's concern about and against homosexuals was very heavily focused on males, lesbians were almost under the radar most of the time. Some of the anti-homosexual laws in the past were phrased entirely in terms of males, as if lesbians did not exist.

I cannot remember a time in the past when I was young (b. 1938) when anyone but men were labelled with the various negative epithets and stereotypes; and I grew up with the idea that only men were "that way." It simply never occurred to me that women could be homosexuals, and no female was ever called that. It wasn't until late in h.s. or perhaps it was even college that I actually encountered something in print that referred to lesbians.

Thus, I think that as society has transitioned to a more open attitude, it's not surprising that the emphasis of that shift is still on the male....right where it has historically always been. And so that's what we see on TV and films.

[Neuling]

Originally Posted by Cape Cod Todd

I live near a small town that becomes a gay mecca in the Summer and my observations have been that many gay men are fun characters. There are gay guys that have muscles others that are thin and others that are fat and hairy, there are ones that dress up and wear makeup and other ones go all out and dress up like women.
Many of these guys seem to be happy.
On the flip side are the lesbian women some of which get all butched up with tattoos, multiple piercings and they dress like a grease monkey. There are others that wear khakis and walk around with their hands in their pockets.

There is nothing wrong with any of these people, they are just living their lives the way they want.

Simply put a gay man on a television show is a character and a gay woman is more subtle.

Would the show "Will and Grace" have been as funny if it were a straight guy and 2 lesbians?

Yes, gay men seem destined for certain roles, not least because one can make fun of them, we all know those exaggerated feminine movements and ways of speaking etc. It is the same in Brazilian TV shows by the way. Hardly any telenovela without a gay character, but I don't remember any lesbian one...

How to portray a lesbian character in an entertaining way? A militaristic tomboy?

[Unsettomati]

A few reasons...

For one, simple math - there are more men than women on television and in films. As such, there will be more gay men than gay women.

Another is the fact that male homosexuality is more taboo than female homosexuality, and fiction, whether drama or comedy, seeks dramatic situations in which to take place. Female homosexuality is treated as more blasé. Really, it's the same reason we see more shows/films about criminals, law enforcement, and doctors than about accountants, plumbers and IT workers. The sitcom Friends was a good example. Suggestions of male homosexuality was played as a source of angst for the regular male characters, insecure in their sexuality (usually someone mistakenly thinking they were gay). Suggestions of female homosexuality among the regular female characters was played more sensually. Simply put, fictional narratives strive for a conflict of some sort, and attitudes about male homosexuality provide more opportunities for conflict than do attitudes about female homosexuality.

I'm sure there are others that don't occur to me at the moment.

[hifijohn]

hollywood has little to do with america but reflects its own tastes.

[SabresFanInSA]

Originally Posted by Unsettomati

Another is the fact that male homosexuality is more taboo than female homosexuality, and fiction, whether drama or comedy, seeks dramatic situations in which to take place. Female homosexuality is treated as more blasé.

I think this is the #1 reason IMO.

[fusion2]

Originally Posted by hifijohn

hollywood has little to do with america but reflects its own tastes.

Well homosexuality isn't a Hollywood taste - there really are gay people in society....