Amy Gardner

Last updated

Amy Gardner
The West Wing character
Amy Gardner.png
Mary-Louise Parker as Amy Gardner
First appearance"The Women of Qumar"
season 3, episode 9
Created by Aaron Sorkin
Portrayed by Mary-Louise Parker

Amelia Gardner is a fictional character portrayed by Mary-Louise Parker on The West Wing , an American serial political drama. Created in the show's third season after a voicemail from Parker to the show's creator, Amy serves as both a feminist viewpoint on the show and a love interest for Josh Lyman. While critics generally approved of her feminist ideals, they were split on whether her romance with Josh was better or worse than his relationship with his former assistant, Donna Moss.

Contents

Creation

Mary-Louise Parker landed the role of Amy Gardner after an unsolicited voicemail to Aaron Sorkin. Mary-Louise Parker 1999.jpg
Mary-Louise Parker landed the role of Amy Gardner after an unsolicited voicemail to Aaron Sorkin.

According to the creator of The West Wing , Aaron Sorkin, Amy's character came about when Mary-Louise Parker called him and left a voicemail that simply said "Hi, this is Mary-Louise Parker. Josh Lyman badly needs to get laid, and I’m the one to do it". Her first appearance was in the next episode, 2001's "The Women of Qumar". [1] [2] Author Patrick Webster speculates that Sydney Ellen Wade, a character in The American President , was the forerunner for Amy. [3] Steve Heisler with The A.V. Club , however, draws a parallel between Amy and another Sorkin character, Rebecca Wells on Sports Night . [4]

Parker was originally meant to be in only a single episode, a feminist operative connected to First Lady Abbey Bartlet. However, she kept appearing in more and more episodes at the requests of the producers; this eventually resulted in Amy's romance with Josh Lyman, the White House Deputy Chief of Staff. [5] Bradley Whitford, who played Josh, told The Washington Post in 2006 that he personally would have preferred that his character end up in a relationship with Amy. [6] Parker, on the other hand, thought that her character's arc became "too soapy" when she began dating Josh, despite fan approval. [7]

Parker had to leave her role by October 2003, at least in part due to her pregnancy with her son, William Atticus. Her last appearance was in the fifth-season episode "Constituency of One", until she reprised her role in the final few episodes of the show. [8]

Role

Amy held multiple jobs over the course of the show, including chief of staff to the first lady, a campaign consultant and political operative, and the White House Director of Legislative Affairs. [7]

Amy is introduced to the show as a hardline feminist; her first scene places her as an executive from a women's political action group, asked to meet with Josh Lyman in her office about a United Nations prostitution treaty. Amy continually presses Josh on an issue in the treaty, eventually threatening to stall the judicial nominations made by President Josiah Bartlet. To reassure Josh, she comments "I didn’t burn my bras, J. In fact, I like my bras. I ring your bell when it's important". This allows Amy to soften her aura and show that she is still part of the system—not a "crazy" feminist to be scared of—without apologizing for her viewpoint. [9] Patrick Webster contended that Amy was still "perhaps the one character in the series with a clear feminist viewpoint, and the only character to have a genuinely militant attitude towards equality of the genders". [10]

Amy's role as a progressive and an idealist, however, is often at odds with or even neutralized by her romance with Josh. [11] In the third-season episode, "We Killed Yamamoto", Amy and Josh are spending an evening together, watching a baseball game and cooking stew, when a dispute arises over a "marriage incentives" attachment on an otherwise beneficial bill. [12] Amy opposes passing the bill with the attachment, remarking that "these old, fat-assed men really believe that if they just pay people to act like Leave It to Beaver , everything will be fine". [13] She tries to sink the bill by organizing women's political groups; Josh, still supporting the bill despite its flaw, reminds Amy that the president is still vastly preferable to his opponent. The dispute poses a threat to their relationship; when Josh tries to call the White House to organize a counter push, Amy tosses his phone in the stew. Indeed, Josh is reprimanded by both the president and his chief of staff, Leo McGarry, for not being able to "tame" Amy. [13] In the end, the White House gets the bill passed—Josh explains that he bribed Amy's boss. Losing the vote also causes Amy to lose her job and her relationship with Josh. [13] [9]

Midway through the fourth season, Amy is hired by the first lady, to put a political heavyweight behind her agenda. [14] She resigns the position in "Constituency of One", commenting to President Bartlet that "I wasn't made to serve at someone else's pleasure". Webster opined that this showed Amy's detachment to the cult-like following other characters could show towards the president. [15] Indeed, authors Simon Philpott and David Mutimer argued that Amy, along with Joey Lucas, Mandy Hampton, and Ainsley Hayes, are allowed to challenge and oppose the male characters because they are not treated as core characters, and do not have jobs dependent on the president or male senior staff. [16]

Reception and influence

Reception for Amy as a character has been generally positive, although critics are split on whether she was the right match for Josh as opposed to Donna. The Atlantic ranked Amy fifth out of 144 in their list of the best characters on The West Wing.

Vulture ranked Amy 23rd in their list of the 38 best characters created by Aaron Sorkin, writing that she was a committed feminist and a respectable character "if you can forgive her season-long cockblock of Donna". [17] The A.V. Club listed Josh and Amy as one of television's "18 tough-luck couples that should have succeeded", praising Amy as a "beautiful, intelligent, and confident" character. However, the article also criticized the show for the stilted and on-and-off nature of the relationship, given Josh's pre-existing chemistry with Donna, and how it harmed Amy's character arc. [18]

For her portrayal of Amy Gardner, Mary-Louise Parker was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. The award ultimately went to co-cast member Stockard Channing for her portrayal of Abbey Bartlet. [19]

The character of Freya Gardner on 2013 British television series The Politician's Husband takes her name from Amy, along with several other West Wing surnames found in the show. [20] Amy's onscreen relationship also struck a chord with viewers; Parker recounted in a 2020 interview that fans would frequently approach her in public, sometimes telling her that "she's stealing him from Donna". [6]

Related Research Articles

<i>The West Wing</i> American political drama television series (1999–2006)

The West Wing is an American serial political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White House, where the Oval Office and offices of presidential senior personnel are located, during the fictitious Democratic administration of President Josiah Bartlet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jed Bartlet</span> Fictional character

Josiah Edward "Jed" Bartlet is a fictional character from the American television serial drama The West Wing created by Aaron Sorkin and portrayed by actor Martin Sheen. The role earned Sheen a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Television Series Drama in 2001, as well as two SAG Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leo McGarry</span> American TV character, created 1999

Leo Thomas McGarry is a fictional character played by American actor John Spencer on the television serial drama The West Wing. This role earned Spencer the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2002. The character of McGarry, a former Secretary of Labor, begins the series as the White House Chief of Staff. He is President Josiah Bartlet's best friend and a father figure to the senior staff, particularly White House Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman.

Samuel Norman Seaborn is a fictional character played by Rob Lowe on the television serial drama The West Wing. From the beginning of the series in 1999 until the middle of the fourth season in 2003, he is deputy White House Communications Director in the administration of President Josiah Bartlet played by Martin Sheen. The character departed from subsequent seasons show after Lowe decided to leave the series, although he returned for several episodes in the final season when he became Deputy Chief of Staff to the new president portrayed by Jimmy Smits.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Josh Lyman</span> American TV character, created 1999

Joshua Lyman is a fictional character played by Bradley Whitford on the television drama series The West Wing. The role earned Whitford the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series in 2001. For most of the series, he is White House Deputy Chief of Staff and Chief Political Advisor in the Josiah Bartlet administration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">C. J. Cregg</span> American TV character

Claudia Jean Cregg is a fictional character played by Allison Janney on the American television drama The West Wing. From the beginning of the series in 1999 until the sixth season in 2004, she was the White House Press Secretary in the administration of President Josiah Bartlet. After that, she serves as the president's chief of staff until the end of the show in 2006. The character is partially inspired by real-life White House Press Secretary Dee Dee Myers, who worked as a consultant on the show.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mandy Hampton</span> American TV character, created 1999

Madeline "Mandy" Hampton is a fictional character from the American serial drama The West Wing, portrayed by Moira Kelly. She was the White House media director during the first season of the show, and the former girlfriend of Deputy White House Chief of Staff Josh Lyman, with whom she often clashed. A savvy political strategist and no-nonsense negotiator, the character is said to have been based on Mandy Grunwald, a real-life Democratic political consultant and media adviser who worked on the presidential campaigns for both Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton. Moira Kelly said of her character, "She's a fighter in a difficult business and has a lot of strength."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donna Moss</span> American TV character, created 1999

Donnatella Moss is a fictional character played by Janel Moloney on the television serial drama The West Wing. During most of the series, Donna works for White House Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman as a senior assistant, until she quits her job to work for the presidential campaign of Bob Russell in season 6. Although all the senior staffs' assistants are continuing characters with personal backgrounds, Donna is the best defined and most often featured staff member on the assistant level, and her difficult, semi-romantic relationship with Josh is a recurring plotline throughout the show. She later works for Bob Russell's campaign for President as a spokeswoman, taking the same job for Matt Santos's campaign after Russell loses the primary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charlie Young</span> American TV character, created 1999

Charles Young is a fictional character played by Dulé Hill on the television serial drama The West Wing. For the majority of the series, he is the Personal Aide to President Josiah Bartlet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ainsley Hayes</span> American television character, created 2000

Ainsley Hayes is a fictional character played by Emily Procter on The West Wing, an American serial political drama. Primarily appearing in the second and third seasons for a total of twelve episodes, Ainsley served as the Associate White House Counsel under the show's president, Josiah Bartlet. Reception for Ainsley has ranged from mixed to positive; she is characterized as smart and flirtatious, but also vulnerable to sexism from other characters and the show's writing.

"Celestial Navigation" is the fifteenth episode of the first season of the American serial political drama The West Wing. The episode aired on February 16, 2000 on NBC. The episode depicts Josh Lyman narrating a story from the past few days to a collegiate audience, as well as the President's nominee to the Supreme Court being arrested for drunk driving. The episode was widely regarded as lighter and more humorous than other episodes of The West Wing.

"Isaac and Ishmael" is a non-canonical episode of the American political drama series The West Wing, usually considered part of its third season. The episode, first aired on October 3, 2001 on NBC, was inspired by the September 11 attacks that had taken place less than a month before.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">On the Day Before</span> 4th episode of the 3rd season of The West Wing

"On the Day Before" is the forty-eighth The West Wing episode and fourth of the third season. It originally aired on NBC on October 31, 2001. The episode deals with a suicide bomber in Jerusalem, as well as continued negotiations over the estate tax. Written by Aaron Sorkin, Paul Redford, and Nanda Chitre, and directed by Christopher Misiano, the episode contains the first appearances by H. Richard Greene as Congressman Robert Royce and Thomas Kopache as Assistant Secretary of State Bob "Bobby" Slatterly. There are also guest appearances by Kevin Tighe, Cliff DeYoung and Mary Mara. Janel Moloney was nominated for an Emmy Award for her performance in this episode.

"Bartlet for America" is the tenth episode of the third season of American serial political drama The West Wing. The episode aired on December 12, 2001 on NBC. The episode features Leo McGarry, the White House Chief of Staff, testifying before a congressional committee after it is revealed that the administration has been covering up the President's multiple sclerosis. Reception of the episode was mostly positive, and the slogan of "Bartlet for America" has been reprised in popular culture and real-life American politics.

"Game On" is the sixth episode of the fourth season of The West Wing. The episode aired on October 30, 2002 on NBC. The episode features Josiah Bartlet, the President of the United States, debating against his opponent in the upcoming presidential election, as well as Sam Seaborn meeting the new character of Will Bailey and Leo McGarry attempting to stop the shipment of arms to a terrorist group. Reception for the episode was mixed, with differing viewpoints on how the show portrayed the dueling ideologies of liberalism and conservatism in the United States.

"The Supremes" is the seventeenth episode of the fifth season of American serial political drama television series The West Wing. It originally aired on NBC on March 24, 2004. In "The Supremes", the White House senior staff, under Democratic President Josiah Bartlet, looks to nominate a judge to the Supreme Court of the United States when Josh comes up with a plan to, instead of nominating a centrist to the seat, nominate one liberal and one conservative candidate to two seats on the Court. The episode was met with mixed reception, although it was later noted the show bore similarities to the 2016 death and replacement of real-life Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.

<i>The West Wing</i> (season 3) Season of television series

The third season of the American political drama television series The West Wing aired in the United States on NBC from October 3, 2001 to May 22, 2002 and consisted of 21 episodes and 2 special episodes.

"A Proportional Response" is the third episode of the first season of The West Wing, an American serial television drama. The episode aired on October 6, 1999 on NBC. The episode centers around the continuation of a storyline introduced in the previous episode, in which a plane carrying a new friend of President Bartlet was attacked by the Syrian government. The episode also sees the introduction of Dulé Hill as Charlie Young, and an argument between C. J. Cregg and Sam Seaborn over Sam's decision to befriend a call girl.

"17 People" is the eighteenth episode of the second season of American serial political drama The West Wing. The episode aired on April 4, 2001 on NBC. The episode depicts Josiah Bartlet, the President of the United States, informing his aide Toby Ziegler of startling news about the President's condition, as well as other members of the cast trying to rewrite a humorous speech the President is to give. The episode was generally praised for its intensity, as well as its complexity and stark contrast between plotlines.

References

  1. ↑ Heisler, Steve (July 11, 2011). "The West Wing: "The Indians In The Lobby"/"The Women Of Qumar"". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on April 11, 2022. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  2. ↑ Lyons, Margaret (May 13, 2014). "How Mary-Louise Parker landed on The West Wing". The Hollywood Reporter . Archived from the original on April 11, 2022. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  3. ↑ Webster 2020, p. 14.
  4. ↑ Heisler, Steve (July 25, 2011). "The West Wing: "H-Con 172"/"100,000 Airplanes"". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on June 15, 2021. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  5. ↑ Henerson, Evan (October 20, 2002). "Theatre's the main thing; TV, movie roles are extracurricular; but Mary-Louise Parker might still be hoping for an invitation onto The Simpsons". Montreal Gazette . Archived from the original on March 20, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
  6. 1 2 Frey, Jennifer (May 13, 2006). "Behind the scenes on West Wing". Kenosha News . The Washington Post. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  7. 1 2 Bucksbaum, Sydney (August 28, 2020). "Mary-Louise Parker reflects on Amy Gardner's complicated legacy on The West Wing". Entertainment Weekly . Archived from the original on March 20, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  8. ↑ "Parker will return to The West Wing". Dayton Daily News . January 19, 2005. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
  9. 1 2 Berila 2007, p. 162.
  10. ↑ Webster 2020, p. 253.
  11. ↑ Berila 2007, p. 161.
  12. ↑ Parry-Giles 2010, p. 83.
  13. 1 2 3 Parry-Giles 2010, p. 84.
  14. ↑ Heisler, Steve (September 24, 2012). "The West Wing: "Red Haven's On Fire"". The A.V. Club . Retrieved April 27, 2022.
  15. ↑ Webster 2020, p. 111.
  16. ↑ Webster 2020, p. 155.
  17. ↑ Lyons, Margaret; Dobbins, Amanda (June 22, 2012). "From Sports Night to Studio 60: Vulture ranks Aaron Sorkin's TV characters". Vulture . Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  18. ↑ Vago, Mike; Adams, Erik; Eakin, Marah; James, Becca; Saraiya, Sonia; Cruickshank, Noah; Dyess-Nugent, Phil; Rytlewski, Evan (November 11, 2013). "18 tough-luck couples that should have succeeded". The A.V. Club . Archived from the original on March 20, 2022. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  19. ↑ "54th Primetime Emmys Nominees and Winners – Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series". Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Archived from the original on October 3, 2017. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  20. ↑ "Honouring the West Wing, UK-style". Evening Standard . May 8, 2013. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 12, 2022– via Newspapers.com.

Works cited

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.