One other very popular show, “The Honeymooners,” had a laugh track louder than most it seemed. Laughter as Ralph, oversized hard working put upon man, threatened his wife, fist raised, “to the moon Alice.” I hated the show. As a young child it made no sense. It was not funny.
Is it then the story of a woman who learned how to weather, by standing her ground, his loud, domineering rants, and threatening gestures, after his plots and schemes turned to nothing and he felt ashamed?
Or maybe the story of the hapless man-child who finds a woman to spend her life weathering the storms, setting limits and holding reason and logic to keep it all
together.
I’m not sure your last statement is true for everyone.
Ralph is the story of every working class guy who graduated into the Great Depression, fought in WWII and then came home and took a safe city job because unemployment terrified them..
People laughed because they understood where his crazy schemes came from because a lot of them had also made similar choices.
Ralph is powerless.
And he's working class in a country which had decided to pretend everyone could move to Long Island and have an office job.
Alice is never terrified, she's barely impressed.
Most of the time, she's annoyed because he's "trying to make something of himself" and she keeps telling him he's good enough.
So you can say "man child" but he gets up every morning and does a job he hates so his wife can live in an apartment he thinks is beneath her because "he never got his shot."
We watched a different show from different lived experiences. I hear how strong your conviction is, and that this is not an exchange of ideas. It’s clear you see my ideas as flatly wrong.
I suspect it is personal for both of us. I was working class poor and never saw men like him as powerless. Though I understood they were unable to grab the brass ring promised to them by the “upwardly mobile society.”
Because I grew up in a working class household as well with older relatives in that age range and the vast majority not only wouldn't hit a woman, they despised men who did as cowards.
The further away we get from the Great Depression, I think the less we understand how emotionally and financially scarring it was for the people who lived through it.
But I was raised by them.
In the sanitized suburbs of 1950s sitcoms, Ralph & Alice were a reminder that not everyone was prospering.
Lucille Ball was quite a feminist. There's a video clip of her speaking to audience members, with a man (a producer, maybe?) lining up people to talk to her. Anytime the guy got even the least bit handsy with a female audience member, like putting a hand on her back, Lucile would bark out "Hands off, Phil!" or whoever. She seemed to have eyes in the back of her head.
When I was in freshman college English in 1976, I wrote a paper comparing Marlo Thomas in "That Girl" (I think that was the title - at any rate, she played an airhead) and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." Marlo would work herself into a problem, and her dad or her boyfriend had to rescue her. Mary would find herself in a jam and extricate herself. She didn't let her boss demean her. Yes, she'd do that bit of a whine - "Oh, Mister Grant!" - but she still controlled her own life.
This piece is perfect. I felt my blood pressure spike with every reference and when I watched each clip. I never realized how much these shows actually pissed me off as a young girl who chafed under the system even back in the 1960’s. As a kid, i was always confused about why it was funny that Lucy wanted to participate in the world. Great work, Professor M. And an excellent story at the Slam! yesterday.
I love this article. Growing up in the 80s and 90s, I never understood the cultural TV humor of 1950s, but my grandmother (silent generation) sure enjoyed it. Lucy was her favorite, as she seemed to challenge the status quo with humor.
How much of early media shaped cultural thinking? How much does now? Good questions for us all to ask and think about. Thanks for writing this.
Thanks for this (and your story at Wham! Bam! Thank You! Slam! yesterday), Meredith. What this brought up for me was KD Lang's performance of "Johnny Get Angry" on SNL in 1989.
The song was originally released in 1962 and was thought of as a lighthearted, fun song with a woman coyly teasing her boyfriend into being a man in order to show her how much he loved her. It hit #7 on the charts.
In 1991, KD Lang came out with her version clearly outlining the dynamics of control and violence against women. Her version was never released commercially.
Words are viruses. Music can burn those messages into your brain. And when the culture tells you this is just a sweet message about young love, you may not trust your own instinct in terms of the underlying message that actually lives there.
Lucy was reportedly the first television program to be filmed before a live audience of 300, using a three-camera setup to be able to catch action at multiple angles simultaneously. And in my own humble opinion, the women made that show.
That said the producers did use sound editing and enhancement to make sure laughs were loud enough in the right places, so even the live audience wasn’t organic really.
One other point about I Love Lucy. When she gets a contract to perform professionally, Ricky emotionally manipulates her into giving it up. It happens twice, once in season 1 and once in season 4. Also, he strikes ("spanks") her when she won't, "do what I say!" in several episodes: The Matchmaker, The Ricardos Move to a Larger Apartment, Ricky Loses His Temper, and others.
I sure hope you get that advance! To think I watched all that bilge during my formative years! Mom thought the funniest part was the women doing the vacuuming in pearls and high heels.
One other very popular show, “The Honeymooners,” had a laugh track louder than most it seemed. Laughter as Ralph, oversized hard working put upon man, threatened his wife, fist raised, “to the moon Alice.” I hated the show. As a young child it made no sense. It was not funny.
Wonderful article Meredith. Thank you.
The Honeymooners gets a mention specifically in a post scheduled next month, ugh. Despicable.
Oops, sorry for jumping ahead!
Not at all! It's great to know my posts are on the right track for what the audience is thinking!
Except in The Honeymooners, Alice wields all the power.
Ralph may bluster as much as he likes. She stands there with her arms crossed, her lips sealed and a withering glare.
No one worried he would hit her.
Here's a thought about the dynamics.
Lucy worries Ricky will find out.
Ralph worries Alice will find out.
Is it then the story of a woman who learned how to weather, by standing her ground, his loud, domineering rants, and threatening gestures, after his plots and schemes turned to nothing and he felt ashamed?
Or maybe the story of the hapless man-child who finds a woman to spend her life weathering the storms, setting limits and holding reason and logic to keep it all
together.
I’m not sure your last statement is true for everyone.
Ralph is the story of every working class guy who graduated into the Great Depression, fought in WWII and then came home and took a safe city job because unemployment terrified them..
People laughed because they understood where his crazy schemes came from because a lot of them had also made similar choices.
Ralph is powerless.
And he's working class in a country which had decided to pretend everyone could move to Long Island and have an office job.
Alice is never terrified, she's barely impressed.
Most of the time, she's annoyed because he's "trying to make something of himself" and she keeps telling him he's good enough.
So you can say "man child" but he gets up every morning and does a job he hates so his wife can live in an apartment he thinks is beneath her because "he never got his shot."
We watched a different show from different lived experiences. I hear how strong your conviction is, and that this is not an exchange of ideas. It’s clear you see my ideas as flatly wrong.
I suspect it is personal for both of us. I was working class poor and never saw men like him as powerless. Though I understood they were unable to grab the brass ring promised to them by the “upwardly mobile society.”
May I ask how old you are?
Because I grew up in a working class household as well with older relatives in that age range and the vast majority not only wouldn't hit a woman, they despised men who did as cowards.
The further away we get from the Great Depression, I think the less we understand how emotionally and financially scarring it was for the people who lived through it.
But I was raised by them.
In the sanitized suburbs of 1950s sitcoms, Ralph & Alice were a reminder that not everyone was prospering.
When's the last time you watched an episode?
See response misplaced under other comments.
Of course, you do.
I want to read this book, so I hope someone with a brain realizes its potential 👏👏
My agent loves it. Publishing is just a nightmare arena right now.
The worst
Same. I love the way can illustrate a point so clearly and with humor. Can’t wait.
Same!
"jokes have a wonderful way of letting ideology walk around in public without showing identification."
Beautifully put, in a most thought-provoking essay. Thanks.
Lucille Ball was quite a feminist. There's a video clip of her speaking to audience members, with a man (a producer, maybe?) lining up people to talk to her. Anytime the guy got even the least bit handsy with a female audience member, like putting a hand on her back, Lucile would bark out "Hands off, Phil!" or whoever. She seemed to have eyes in the back of her head.
Oh she was brilliant. I don’t blame her for the way the show was structured.
I LOVE that clip so much...Lucy was a badass 💜
When I was in freshman college English in 1976, I wrote a paper comparing Marlo Thomas in "That Girl" (I think that was the title - at any rate, she played an airhead) and "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." Marlo would work herself into a problem, and her dad or her boyfriend had to rescue her. Mary would find herself in a jam and extricate herself. She didn't let her boss demean her. Yes, she'd do that bit of a whine - "Oh, Mister Grant!" - but she still controlled her own life.
Absolutely! I had my Cold War American history class watch an episode of the show when we discussed the shifting 1970s attitudes.
This piece is perfect. I felt my blood pressure spike with every reference and when I watched each clip. I never realized how much these shows actually pissed me off as a young girl who chafed under the system even back in the 1960’s. As a kid, i was always confused about why it was funny that Lucy wanted to participate in the world. Great work, Professor M. And an excellent story at the Slam! yesterday.
Thank you!
I love this article. Growing up in the 80s and 90s, I never understood the cultural TV humor of 1950s, but my grandmother (silent generation) sure enjoyed it. Lucy was her favorite, as she seemed to challenge the status quo with humor.
How much of early media shaped cultural thinking? How much does now? Good questions for us all to ask and think about. Thanks for writing this.
Thanks for this (and your story at Wham! Bam! Thank You! Slam! yesterday), Meredith. What this brought up for me was KD Lang's performance of "Johnny Get Angry" on SNL in 1989.
The song was originally released in 1962 and was thought of as a lighthearted, fun song with a woman coyly teasing her boyfriend into being a man in order to show her how much he loved her. It hit #7 on the charts.
In 1991, KD Lang came out with her version clearly outlining the dynamics of control and violence against women. Her version was never released commercially.
Words are viruses. Music can burn those messages into your brain. And when the culture tells you this is just a sweet message about young love, you may not trust your own instinct in terms of the underlying message that actually lives there.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p8OyRj1NkJw&list=RDp8OyRj1NkJw&start_radio=1
"Lucy is filmed before a live audience."
Lucy was reportedly the first television program to be filmed before a live audience of 300, using a three-camera setup to be able to catch action at multiple angles simultaneously. And in my own humble opinion, the women made that show.
I probably should do an edit to remind people that the laugh track wasn’t used there and people still knew to laugh at her ambition.
This is such an important point, Professor Meredith. Thank you for making it.
Misogyny often needs no subtitles and direct cues. It's already ingrained in the social fabric.
Or the cards held up that said laugh.
That said the producers did use sound editing and enhancement to make sure laughs were loud enough in the right places, so even the live audience wasn’t organic really.
Well, that is depressing to learn. Damn.
Exactly.
One other point about I Love Lucy. When she gets a contract to perform professionally, Ricky emotionally manipulates her into giving it up. It happens twice, once in season 1 and once in season 4. Also, he strikes ("spanks") her when she won't, "do what I say!" in several episodes: The Matchmaker, The Ricardos Move to a Larger Apartment, Ricky Loses His Temper, and others.
Keep writing (you will anyway) and then use the advance money for a lovely vacation!
Astute analysis. Made me think of My Three Sons and how Fred MacMurray made it funny for a man to wear a kitchen apron instead of replacing his wife.
I sure hope you get that advance! To think I watched all that bilge during my formative years! Mom thought the funniest part was the women doing the vacuuming in pearls and high heels.
Spot ON. I’m so sick of cultural consensus coercion.
I hope you get the book made. I would definitely read it!
🎟️Put me on the pre-order list! Thank you for this excellent piece.