In part one, Jess and Susie revisited a famous episode of The Golden Girls, in which Blanche mistakes the word “lesbian” for “Lebanese.” (“Not ‘Lebanese,’ Blanche. Lesbian!”) Nearly 40 years later, the IKYKY of calling lesbians “Lebanese” lives on – as does the gay legacy of The Golden Girls. Jess and Susie talk to the originator of that joke about the role that The Golden Girls played – and still plays – in gay culture, as well as how that episode fits into the history of LGBTQ representation on screen. Plus: a lesbian-lebanese surprise!

GUESTS:
Maya Salam, culture editor at The New York Times
Drew Mackie, cohost of Gayest Episode Ever

FOR MORE:
At Long Last, Lesbian Portrayals On Screen Are More Complex (NYT)
Mean Girls’ Janice Ian Was a Lesbian (After Ellen)
Thank You for Being a Friend: A Gay Golden Girls History (Frontiers)
Blanche’s Brother is a Homo, & More Gay GG Moments (Gayest Episode Ever)

In part one, Jess and Susie revisited a famous episode of The Golden Girls, in which Blanche mistakes the word “lesbian” for “Lebanese.” (“Not ‘Lebanese,’ Blanche. Lesbian!”) Nearly 40 years later, the IKYKY of calling lesbians “Lebanese” lives on – as does the gay legacy of The Golden Girls. Jess and Susie talk to the originator of that joke about the role that The Golden Girls played – and still plays – in gay culture, as well as how that episode fits into the history of LGBTQ representation on screen. Plus: a lesbian-lebanese surprise!
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li><a href="http://lebaneselesbian.com">Maya Salam</a>, culture editor at The New York Times</li>
<li>Drew Mackie, cohost of <a href="https://www.gayestepisodeever.com/">Gayest Episode Ever</a></li>
</ul>
FOR MORE:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/03/t-magazine/lesbian-representation-tv-film.html">At Long Last, Lesbian Portrayals On Screen Are More Complex</a> (NYT)</li>
<li><a href="https://afterellen.com/mean-girls-janis-ian-was-a-lesbian/">Mean Girls’ Janice Ian Was a Lesbian</a> (After Ellen)</li>
<li><a href="https://www.gayestepisodeever.com/special-features/thank-you-for-being-a-friend-a-golden-girls-oral-history">Thank You for Being a Friend: A Gay Golden Girls History</a> (Frontiers)</li>
<li><a href="https://gayestepisodeever.libsyn.com/category/golden+girls">Blanche’s Brother is a Homo, &amp; More Gay GG Moments</a> (Gayest Episode Ever)</li>
</ul>

Is there a cultural moment from your past that looks different in retrospect? Maybe it’s a scandalous tabloid story seared into your teenage brain or a political punchline that just feels wrong now. It might be a very specific red swimsuit that inspired a decade of plastic surgery (see: “Baywatch”) or the inescapable smell of an entire generation of prepubescent boys (Axe body spray, anyone?). Each week on IN RETROSPECT, Emmy-winning journalist Susie Banikarim and New York Times editor Jessica Bennett revisit a pop culture moment from the 80s and 90s that shaped them — to try to understand what it taught us about the world, and a woman’s place in it.

Talk to us at @inretropod, @susiebnyc and @jessicabennett on Instagram. New episodes each Friday.

Is there a cultural moment from your past that looks different in retrospect? Maybe it’s a scandalous tabloid story seared into your teenage brain or a political punchline that just feels wrong now. It might be a very specific red swimsuit that inspired a decade of plastic surgery (see: “Baywatch”) or the inescapable smell of an entire generation of prepubescent boys (Axe body spray, anyone?). Each week on IN RETROSPECT, Emmy-winning journalist Susie Banikarim and New York Times editor Jessica Bennett revisit a pop culture moment from the 80s and 90s that shaped them — to try to understand what it taught us about the world, and a woman’s place in it.
Talk to us at @inretropod, @susiebnyc and @jessicabennett on Instagram. New episodes each Friday.

In Retrospect with Susie Banikarim and Jessica Bennett

From ‘Mean Girls’ to ‘Glee,’ a Lesbian Joke Evolves (Pt 2)

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/9492db9a-7b0d-42e4-8ebb-b110011c72c2/transcript

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