Gay in the Writer’s Room

A Rant at Gay Writers

Ilene Chaiken, out writer/creator of Showtime’s groundbreaking The L Word, which ends its run next year, spoke at the L.A. GLAAD Media Awards in April and took gay writers and creators to task for not taking more action to get LGBT series and stories into the entertainment world.

Chaiken at the 19th annual GLAAD Media Awards

Photo credit: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images

“I envision a moment in the not too distant future when my kids are going to say to me, ‘What? You mean there used to be a time when gay people couldn’t get married to one another? That’s crazy, mama.’ It’s just as crazy to me that at sometime in the very near future we might look around at our movie and TV screens and find ourselves all but invisible again. I’m baffled and perturbed by the way in which our Hollywood entertainment culture seems to lag behind the culture at large.

When I first pitched The L Word to Showtime – back in the dark ages – I went out on a limb and said to them, If you let me make a smart, sexy TV show about lesbians and you give me as much money and support as you give to any other aspiring prime time drama, and you let me cast Jennifer Beals in the lead, I’m willing to bet you it will be a hit. I’ll put that same bet on the table again right now – to every network, every studio, every production company and every creative artist. It’s no riskier than any other risk you take.

The opportunity is there for you to make a killing telling our stories. And for those of us in the LGBT community, I say, if history is indeed written by the victors, let’s make ourselves victorious by writing our own history…and directing it and producing it and starring in it.”

(For Chaiken’s entire speech, you can see it on her blog on the www.ourchart.com site.)

Case in point, one gay writer who initially agreed to talk with me about his experiences being the sole gay writer on a popular testosterone-charged series changed his mind and decided he did not want to go on record (even when complete anonymity was promised). Whether this is internal homophobia or a fear of being blacklisted by those who could give him more writing work in the future, the fact remains that when gay writers keep their mouths shut about negative experiences they have encountered due to homophobia, it hurts the gay writers who will come along in the future.

Where Everybody Knows Your Name

For gay writers working in Hollywood, there is a place to turn to vent frustrations, share experiences and realize that other writers are going through similar trials in the television business. The Gay and Lesbian Writers Committee (part of the Writers Guild of America) exists as a resource for gay writers who are WGA members.

Gary Goldstein, Chair for the Committee, clarified that the group is not a “watch dog” group but the committee “does talk about TV shows and how things are represented as well as how things can be better.”

While they sponsor WGA-wide events like “Those Were the Gays,” which honored gay and lesbian screenwriting pioneers and “From the Margins to the Mainstream,” which showcased LGBT portrayals then and now, the committee also has monthly meetings for members that are open forums with a wide array of topics ranging from homophobia and pitching a gay series to the writer’s overall responsibility to continue producing gay material with gay characters. Guests for these forums have included, producer Dan Jinks (Pushing Daisies) and out actors Chad Allen and Robert Gant.

Goldstein stresses that it’s important to have gay writers on television shows. “You need people around who are vigilant to make sure people know some content may be offensive.” Goldstein added that there’s such a thing called “accidental homophobia” where something may not be directly anti-gay, but the underlying message is exactly that.

“I don’t think virtually any film or TV show purposely is homophobic but they just want the easy laugh. [But] how often do we see that scene where two straight guys are forced to bunk together and when one rolls over to the other one it’s as if he were set on fire? Straight people may laugh but although the situation might be funny, it’s happening at the expense of real people.”

Language itself can be a source of underlying anti-gay messages, as well. “Like using the word c--ksucker,” Goldstein offered. “The word has a negative connotation as if you’re a bad thing if you suck c--k.” Looking at the word gay itself, Goldstein says that word is often used in a way that means not cool. “Though people aren’t saying homosexuals are not cool, the negative connotation is unintentional but that doesn’t mean it no longer exists. There has to be a better word that can be used than gay.”

Where to draw the line between humorous and offensive when it comes to gay content or language is difficult to distinguish and is subjective. Offering his own thoughts about potentially damaging language, Waring feels that people getting worked up over the use of a word like cocksucker, for example, is taking things a little too far. “Language is fluid,” he said. “If you dissect etymology, you can get into a lot of trouble.”

Clearly, life in the writers’ room is still a mixed bag. For every gay wedding on a major television network, there are still gay characters that are made straight out of fear and other gay content that is believed only appropriate on an all-gay channel. Despite the obstacles, gay writers need to constantly strive to reflect the real world where gays aren’t just in the writers’ room, but in the living rooms, the classrooms and yes, the bedrooms.