LGBTQIA+


The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation Presents

02:26

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Interviewees discuss the portrayal of the LGBTQIA+ community on television.

Highlights
RuPaul Charles on the contestants of RuPaul's Drag Race, and their courage and vulnerability
04:35
Sheila Kuehl on coming out on The Geraldo Rivera Show and Good Morning America
05:45
Richard Chamberlain on the portrayal of gay people on film and television
01:21
Paris Barclay on being openly gay and how it has affected his career
01:57
Suze Orman on coming out on national television when she won her first Emmy Award
02:51
Darren Star on the censorship issues that arose on Melrose Place, particularly involving the character "Matt Fielding," who was gay
03:16
Who talked about this topic

Ray Aghayan

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Ray Aghayan on producing Consenting Adult
02:32

John Amos

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John Amos on guest-starring on Two and a Half Men
03:36

Julie Andrews

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Julie Andrews on the TV movie Our Sons
01:38

Alan Ball

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Alan Ball on the rumor that vampires are a metaphor for gay people on True Blood
01:23
Alan Ball on sexuality on Six Feet Under
02:54

Paris Barclay

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Paris Barclay on being openly gay and how it has affected his career
01:57

Rona Barrett

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Rona Barrett on her large gay following
02:39
Rona Barrett on her large gay following
02:39

Yvette Lee Bowser

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Yvette Lee Bowser on the legacy of Dear White People
00:24

James Burrows

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James Burrows on why Will & Grace can get away with some of the topics it covers; on being involved with a somewhat political show
02:32
James Burrows on Standards and Practices having issues with some jokes on Will & Grace
03:18
James Burrows on how Will & Grace has been perceived in the gay community
00:34

Philip Carey

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Phil Carey on guest starring on the All in the Family episode "Judging Books by Covers" -- where he plays a homosexual character
02:27

Gilbert Cates

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Gilbert Cates on the TV movie Consenting Adult, for which he was nominated for an Emmy
02:10

Richard Chamberlain

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Richard Chamberlain on the portrayal of gay people on film and television
01:21

RuPaul Charles

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RuPaul Charles on the pressures of being black and gay during the run of The RuPaul Show and on RuPaul's Drag Race
02:06
RuPaul Charles on the legacy and message of RuPaul's Drag Race
01:37
RuPaul Charles on the contestants of RuPaul's Drag Race, and their courage and vulnerability
04:35
RuPaul Charles on his message as a performer
04:13

David Chase

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David Chase on the subject of a gay mafia member on The Sopranos and how the character of "Vito" coming out was dealt with

Beatrice Arthur with Emerson College

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Beatrice Arthur on homosexuality on television
02:53

Hal Cooper

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Hal Cooper on directing Love, Sidney
06:28

Ron Cowen

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Ron Cowen on writing 1985's An Early Frost (with Daniel Lipman), which depicted the AIDS epidemic, being his proudest career achievement
01:34

David Crane

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David Crane on positive portrayals of gay characters on his shows
01:12

Billy Crystal

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Billy Crystal on being cast as "Jodie Dallas" on Soap, television's first regular, gay character
07:11
Billy Crystal on the reception of his Soap character, "Jodie Dallas," who was gay
01:50
Billy Crystal on professional concerns he had about playing a gay character on Soap, and on his first HBO stand up comedy special
05:11

Rebecca Eaton

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Rebecca Eaton on the controversy surrounding the Masterpiece Theatre program "Portrait of a Marriage", which featured love scenes between two women
03:03

Michael Eisner

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Michael Eisner on how Ellen DeGeneres approached him about coming out on television; and how he pushed her to define what more the Ellen  series would be about

Richard Frank

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Richard Frank on developing Ellen, and "Ellen" coming out
06:00

Brad Garrett

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Brad Garrett on playing a gay lawyer on The Pursuit of Happiness
01:59

Whoopi Goldberg

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Whoopi Goldberg on the HBO documentary she produced about Moms Mabley, Whoopi Goldberg Presents Moms Mabley
09:28

Hal Holbrook

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Hal Holbrook on appearing in the groundbreaking made-for-television movie That Certain Summer
10:39

Silvio Horta

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Silvio Horta on the issue of sexuality on Ugly Betty
01:11

Lamont Johnson

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Lamont Johnson on directing the groundbreaking drama That Certain Summer, starring Martin Sheen and Hal Holbrook
03:53

Elodie Keene

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Elodie Keene on directing the first lesbian kiss on television on L.A. Law, and on the lesbian scenes in Pretty Little Liars
02:12

Jack Klugman

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Jack Klugman on network concerns that The Odd Couple was about a gay couple
00:36

Sheila Kuehl

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Sheila Kuehl on the planned Zelda Gilroy  spin-off of The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis
06:28
Sheila Kuehl on coming out on The Geraldo Rivera Show and Good Morning America
02:04
Sheila Kuehl on the Supreme Court's 2013 ruling regarding gay marriage
01:42
Sheila Kuehl on being the first lesbian elected to the California State Assembly
02:04

Paul LaMastra

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Paul LaMastra on editing the made-for-television movie Foxfire and living with HIV
11:37

Lucy Lawless

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Lucy Lawless on Xena's world on Xena: Warrior Princess  and the lesbian overtones of the show
02:41
Lucy Lawless on dealing with her fame from Xena: Warrior Princess  and being a feminist icon
02:00

Steve Levitan

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Steve Levitan on wanting to have a gay couple raising a child as one of the central families on Modern Family
00:37

Judith Light

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Judith Light on dealing with the AIDS crisis and playing "Jeanne White" in The Ryan White Story
14:35

William Link

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William Link on writing and producing That Certain Summer
07:55

Daniel Lipman

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Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on their first impressions of An Early Frost when the idea was presented to them by NBC, and why they insisted that the main character, who had AIDS, be alive at the end of the movie
02:12
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the research they did when writing the 1985 made-for-television movie An Early Frost, which depicted the AIDS crisis, by visiting AIDS patients at Santa Monica Hospital, and on the understanding of AIDS at that time
03:03
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the kinds of notes they received from executives on their 1985 made-for-television movie An Early Frost, which depicted the AIDS crisis, and on the public response to the movie
05:48
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the importance of An Early Frost their 1985 made-for-television movie which depicted the AIDS crisis, being written and played for a mass audience
02:18
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the response of the gay community to their made-for-television movie An Early Frost
03:45
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on what they hoped the audience would take away from their made-for-television movie An Early Frost, which depicted the AIDS crisis: education, tolerance, and compassion
02:36
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the Sisters characters "Norma Lear" (played by Nora Dunn), who was gay, and on the character came to be recurring, rather than appearing in just a few episodes
02:02
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the television and political atmosphere for both gay people and gay characters at the time they were developing Queer as Folk
04:47
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the press reaction to Queer as Folk, and in particular the pushback they got from the gay community
04:16
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on Queer as Folk presenting a reflection of the gay community in a way that had never been seen before on television, and the power of that: "seeing a reflection of yourself validates your life. It validates who you are. It validates that you exist"
01:41
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the impact of the depictions of sex on Queer as Folk and their intention behind it
01:52
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on how they approached the storyline where "Justin" is the victim of a hate crime at the end of season one of Queer as Folk
05:30
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the depiction of people living with HIV/AIDS on Queer as Folk
07:39
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the difference between what they could depict in their 1985 made-for-television movie An Early Frost and on Queer as Folk, both of which centered on gay characters
02:02
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the bombing storyline in the final season of Queer as Folk and why they wanted to depict an attack on the gay community in that manner
02:47
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on their first impressions of An Early Frost when the idea was presented to them by NBC, and why they insisted that the main character, who had AIDS, be alive at the end of the movie
02:12
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the research they did when writing the 1985 made-for-television movie An Early Frost, which depicted the AIDS crisis, by visiting AIDS patients at Santa Monica Hospital, and on the understanding of AIDS at that time
03:03
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the kinds of notes they received from executives on their 1985 made-for-television movie An Early Frost, which depicted the AIDS crisis, and on the public response to the movie
05:48
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the importance of An Early Frost their 1985 made-for-television movie which depicted the AIDS crisis, being written and played for a mass audience
02:18
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the response of the gay community to their made-for-television movie An Early Frost
03:45
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on what they hoped the audience would take away from their made-for-television movie An Early Frost, which depicted the AIDS crisis: education, tolerance, and compassion
02:36
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the Sisters characters "Norma Lear" (played by Nora Dunn), who was gay, and on the character came to be recurring, rather than appearing in just a few episodes
02:02
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the television and political atmosphere for both gay people and gay characters at the time they were developing Queer as Folk
04:47
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the press reaction to Queer as Folk, and in particular the pushback they got from the gay community
04:16
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on Queer as Folk presenting a reflection of the gay community in a way that had never been seen before on television, and the power of that: "seeing a reflection of yourself validates your life. It validates who you are. It validates that you exist"
01:41
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the impact of the depictions of sex on Queer as Folk and their intention behind it
01:52
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on how they approached the storyline where "Justin" is the victim of a hate crime at the end of season one of Queer as Folk
05:30
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the depiction of people living with HIV/AIDS on Queer as Folk
07:39
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the difference between what they could depict in their 1985 made-for-television movie An Early Frost and on Queer as Folk, both of which centered on gay characters
02:02
Ron Cowen and Daniel Lipman on the bombing storyline in the final season of Queer as Folk and why they wanted to depict an attack on the gay community in that manner
02:47

Chuck Lorre

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Chuck Lorre on dealing with gender issues on the Two and a Half Men episode "An Old Flame with a New Wick"
02:41

Susan Lucci

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Susan Lucci on the coming out of "Erica Kane's" daughter storyline on All My Children
03:12

Richard Matheson

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Richard Matheson on the TV movie Scream of the Wolf and his script's suggestion of homoeroticism that didn't translate to screen
00:42

Eryn Krueger Mekash

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Eryn Krueger Mekash on her approach to the makeup on The Normal Heart, and on winning an Emmy for her work
08:10

Agnes Nixon

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Agnes Nixon on the then-recent (1997) introduction of a gay character on All My Children
01:37

Ed O'Neill

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Ed O'Neill on the relationship between "Jay Pritchett" and his son, "Mitchell Pritchett" on Modern Family
02:00

Lori Openden

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Lori Openden on the impact of Will & Grace on American culture
00:32
Lori Openden on how diversity in casting has changed since she started in the industry
01:53

Suze Orman

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Suze Orman on coming out on national television when she won her first Emmy Award
02:51

Bill Persky

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Bill Persky on the Kate & Allie episode "Landlady" which dealt with LGBTQ issues
04:06

Jay Sandrich

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Jay Sandrich on an episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show with a character who is gay and getting that episode on air
01:52
Jay Sandrich on the controversies surrounding some of the gay themes of the show Soap
02:53
Jay Sandrich on the show Love, Sidney based on a film, which had a gay character, though the network wouldn't allow a gay character on the television version
01:19

Alfred Schneider

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Alfred Schneider on the decision not to allow two men to kiss on Thirtysomething
01:34
Alfred Schneider on negotiating the depiction of the controversial subject matter of That Certain Summer
01:43
Alfred Schneider on sit-in protests by the gay community in response to Marcus Welby, M.D.
01:28

Ralph Senensky

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Ralph Senensky on directing Breaking Point and "The Bull Roarer" episode in which a young man thinks he might be gay
03:52

Richard Shapiro

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Richard and Esther Shapiro on Dynasty star Jack Coleman ("Steven Carrington")
02:43
Richard and Esther Shapiro on memorable storylines on Dynasty - on "Steven Carrington's" homosexuality
02:10
Richard and Esther Shapiro on "Steven Carrington's" homosexuality on Dynasty
01:15

Esther Shapiro

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Richard and Esther Shapiro on memorable storylines on Dynasty - on "Steven Carrington's" homosexuality
02:10
Richard and Esther Shapiro on Dynasty star Jack Coleman ("Steven Carrington")
02:43
Richard and Esther Shapiro on "Steven Carrington's" homosexuality on Dynasty
01:15

Aaron Spelling

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Aaron Spelling on believing that you can teach and entertain at the same time
00:31
Aaron Spelling on creating one of TV's first regular gay characters on Dynasty
01:07

Darren Star

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Darren Star on the censorship issues that arose on Melrose Place, particularly involving the character "Matt Fielding," who was gay
03:16

Tracey Ullman

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Tracey Ullman on the character "Francesca" on The Tracey Ullman Show, whose fathers were gay, and on receiving a GLAAD award for the character
01:07

Dean Valentine

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Dean Valentine on Ellen DeGeneres' decision for her character "Ellen Morgan" to come out on Ellen and on the cultural impact of "The Puppy Episode"
11:00

Bruce Vilanch

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Bruce Vilanch on his experiences as an openly gay man in Hollywood and how he approached being open about his identity throughout his career
03:51

Ellen M. Violett

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Ellen M. Violett on how her sexuality affected her career
02:01

Keenen Ivory Wayans

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Keenen Ivory Wayans on the "Men on Football" sketch on In Living Color, parodying Carl Lewis, and the negative response to it
07:02

Fred Willard

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Fred Willard on playing the character "Scott", who was gay, on Roseanne
12:18

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