She TV

Last updated
She TV
She TV logo and title screen.png
Genre Sketch comedy
Created byTamara Rawitt
Starring Jennifer Coolidge
Linda Kash
Simbi Khali
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes6
Production
Executive producers George Schlatter
Bonnie Turner
Terry Turner
Production locationLos Angeles
Original release
Network ABC
ReleaseAugust 16 (1994-08-16) –
September 13, 1994 (1994-09-13)

She TV is a short-lived sketch comedy television series that aired on ABC in 1994. The show was created by Tamara Rawitt, a producer on In Living Color , and featured a majority-women cast intended to distinguish it from male-dominated comedy shows of the time. The show was meant to "explore the female point of view" and satirize current events but was not, according to the show's producers, intended to be feminist. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

During its run, She TV occupied a popular Tuesday night time slot normally reserved for the more serious police drama NYPD Blue . Only 5 episodes aired of a 6-episode order [4] , but the show featured early starring roles for actors such as Jennifer Coolidge and Simbi Khali. The cast in general was unknown to the public and was drawn from the stand-up world, the Groundlings, and Second City. [2] The show itself was produced by industry veterans and featured major guest stars such as Tony Curtis and Bea Arthur.

Cast

Reception

She TV received mixed reviews. Variety panned it as "[failing] to score on any level". [1] The Chicago Tribune argued the show was "fenced in" by the standards of network television, and that its unwillingness to be overtly feminist made it feel "muted" and unappealing. [5] A Time review, however, called the show a "breakthrough" and one of the best "in years," bemoaning the fact that it failed to find an audience. [6]

Several explanations were offered for the show's failure beyond its quality. Comedy shows were uncommon to see as the last show in a network's primetime lineup, and audiences may have preferred dramas at that time. Writers also speculated that the show's focus on a majority-women cast may have "scared off" male viewers. [3] [6] Comedian Jane Lynch joked about that possibility in her memoir, describing the show as "an all-female comedy teeming with fresh, new girl talent and writers—and so of course, it failed almost immediately." [7]

Conservative talk-radio host Rush Limbaugh denounced She TV after the show aired a sketch mocking him as a racist. Limbaugh demanded an apology and retraction from ABC, which he did not receive, and also threatened a boycott of the network. [8]

References

  1. 1 2 Sandler, Adam (August 16, 1994). "She TV review". Variety. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  2. 1 2 Glimpse, Jennifer (August 14, 1994). "On View : 'She TV': Comic Role Reversals". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  3. 1 2 "`SHE TV' LIGHTENS UP 10 P.M. SLOT". The Roanoke Times. August 13, 1994. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  4. ↑ "In Brief". Broadcasting & Cable: 80. September 19, 1994. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  5. ↑ "Comedy Hour". Chicago Tribune. August 15, 1994. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  6. 1 2 Zoglin, Richard (September 12, 1994). "TELEVISION: She Who Laughs Last ..." TIME. Retrieved 20 September 2025.
  7. ↑ Lynch, Jane (2011). Happy Accidents (1st ed.). New York: Voice/Hyperion. p. 165. ISBN   9781401341763.
  8. ↑ Kurtz, Howard (1997). Hot Air: All Talk, All the Time (1. ed.). New York: Basic Books. pp. 248–249. ISBN   9780465030743.
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