Stealing the Show: How Women Are Revolutionizing Television

by Joy Press

"From a leading cultural journalist, a definitive look at the rise of the female showrunner--and a new golden era of television. Female writers, directors, and producers have radically transformed the television industry in recent years. Shonda Rhimes, Lena Dunham, Tina Fey, Amy Schumer, Mindy Kaling: These extraordinary women have shaken up the entertainment landscape, making it look like an equal opportunity dream factory. But things weren't always this rosy. It took decades of determination in the face of preconceived ideas and outright prejudice to reach this new era. In this endlessly informative and wildly entertaining book, veteran journalist Joy Press tells the story of the maverick women who broke through the barricades, starting with Roseanne Barr (Roseanne) and Diane English (Murphy Brown), whose iconic shows redefined America's idea of "family values" and incited controversy that reached as far as the White House. Barr and English inspired the next generation of female TV writers and producers to carve out the creative space and executive power needed to present radically new representations of women on the small screen. Showrunners like Amy Sherman Palladino (Gilmore Girls), Jenji Kohan (Weeds, Orange Is the New Black), and Jill Soloway (Transparent) created characters and storylines that changed how women are seen and how they see themselves, in the process transforming the culture. Stealing the Show is the perfect companion to such bestsellers as Mindy Kaling's Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, Tina Fey's Bossypants, and Shonda Rhimes' Year of Yes'; not to mention Sheila Weller's Girls Like Us and Rebecca Traister's All the Single Ladies. Drawing on deep research and interviews with the key players, this is the exhilarating behind-the-scenes story of a truly groundbreaking revolution in television"--

• ISBN10: 1501137727
• ISBN13: 9781501137723
• Publish Date: 19 March 2019 (first published 27 February 2018)
• Publish Status: Active
• Imprint: Atria Books
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[clementine]

This is a well-researched history of female-created television shows and the way progressive female characters have become more and more common. There's a nice exploration of the cultural periods each show belongs to, though I would have liked even deeper acknowledgment of mass culture as a reaction to social and political movements. I wish there had been more focus on the role of women who aren't just creators/showrunners/writers, because female editors and crews play a huge part in the way a show takes shape and we are slowly seeing more women in every type of production role. Feminist media critics also need to cut it out with the Lena Dunham worship. It's utterly bizarre how Press was able to acknowledge Dunham's various fuck-ups while still maintaining that she is ultimately a positive force in the media landscape and that the real reason she is so hated is because she puts her naked size 10 body on television. Referring to her "disarming humor" is a grossly inadequate euphemism. Dunham traffics in shock value at the expense of pretty much every population that she doesn't belong to, her "feminism" entirely self-serving. Like, come on, we need to move past this.

[Quirky Cat]

I received an advanced copy of Stealing the Show: How Women Are Revolutionizing Television by Joy Press from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Stealing the Show came as a surprise to me. It never occurred to me to look for a book telling us the history of women in television (or the struggles they face behind the scenes). As somebody that’s always been curious about the industry, I found this to be both fascinating and shocking at times. It’s a compelling read right through to the end, and I’m happy for every moment I spent reading it.
Joy Press did a wonderful job balancing information and understanding. Before reading this novel there were some terms about television that I did not know beforehand (for example while I had heard of a showrunner, I didn’t know what their actual purpose was), but that has changed along with my understanding about how TV has changed for and by women.
I’ll confess that I haven’t seen every show that was discussed, so there were times that I felt that there were references going over my head (considering the complexity and humor of some of the shows, this isn’t really that surprising). Even without having the context about the show itself, I still greatly enjoyed reading about the show’s workings behind the scenes; what the director/showrunner had to go through to get her creation out there. That was the important part for me (though I’ll confess to an increased amount of enjoyment when Press talked about some of my favorite shows, such as Gilmore Girls).
There are so many shows covered in this novel, I guarantee you that you’ll find at least one (if not more) that you’ve personally loved. Series discussed include: Murphy Brown, Rosanne, Gilmore Girls, Grey’s Anatomies, 30 Rock, New Girl, The Mindy Project, Girls, Inside Amy Schumer, Broad City, Weeds, Orange Is the New Black, and Transparent. Many more shows are covered as well, but those are the ones that stood out to me the most.
I loved how Joy Press dedicated her Epilogue into talking about television in movies in context with today; how things may change for the better or worse. Personally, I was left feeling hopeful; looking at how much has changed already; it’s hard not to appreciate all that. Her use of the alien story also helped (what would aliens think of women today versus 30-40 years ago, if they were basing us solely off of a TV representation?) add full context to the situation, and really brought to light all the changes that have already been made.

For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks