Gayest Episode Ever

"Once a Friend" (October 1, 1977) Often cited as TV's first sympathetic portrayal of a trans character, this episode of The Jeffersons introduces Edie Stokes as someone who, unlike other trans characters in earlier portrayals, is not at a point of crisis. She's transitioned, she's living the life she wants and she's merely reaching out to her old Navy buddy to say hi — not to get his approval. Drew and Glen are joined by Marsha's Plate host Diamond Stylz to discuss why this episode is not only good for when it aired but also better than many portrayals of trans characters who'd come in the years to follow. Subscribe to Marsha's Plate, Diamonds podcast that discusses topics relevant to the black trans community. Make a donation to Black Trans Women Inc. or subscribe to the newsletter. Listen to the episode of Alison Arngrim's podcast where she interviews Veronica Redd, who played Edie. Listen to the episode of Gender Reveal that features Diamond as a guest. Also listen to the Trans Vagina Dialogues, a new TableCakes podcast hosted by Lindsey Deaton and featuring a weekly guest. Follow on Twitter, on Apple Podcasts or on Spotify. Purchase the first issue of Drew and Glen's new comic anthology, Beyond Sunset Go shop at our TeePublic store! Follow: GEE on Facebook • GEE's Facebook Group • GEE on Twitter • GEE on Instagram • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: Apple Podcasts • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! We even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Neighbors" (November 2, 1995) So it's been a hot second since we talked about friends, and to be honest, we can't mentally deal with the combined phobia attack that is Friends so instead we are offering everyone a glimpse of a forgotten, perhaps even lost fragment of the Friends would tour of terrible, that being Ross Geller's pitstop on The Single Guy, where he helped bring about gay panic. Honestly, this episode is not actually all that bad, and it makes a guy wonder why this show failed when other Friends clones succeeded. Listen to the latest episode of Smart Mouth. Purchase the first issue of Drew and Glen's new comic anthology, Beyond Sunset Go shop at our TeePublic store! Follow: GEE on Facebook • GEE's Facebook Group • GEE on Twitter • GEE on Instagram • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! We even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Indispensable Jeannie" (November 25, 1968) We're as surprised as anyone that we've found an episode of I Dream of Jeannie that we can cover on this podcast. All credit goes to Brett White, who's not only host of the Must Have Seen TV podcast but also the guy currently writing a book on the life of Hayden Rorke, who played Dr. Bellows on Jeannie but also was openly gay to the show's cast and crew — and who pulled some important strings in TV history. This episode is even more interesting when considered in the context of Rorke's life, but it does actually feature a real live gay joke. Listen to Must Have Seen TV's I Dream of Jeannie episode with Jackie Cox Yes, the Jeannie cartoon spinoff is online in all its Mark Hamill-inclusive glory Beware The S From Hell Follow Brett on Twitter and also give him money to write his book about Hayden Rorke Also follow his husband Sebastian Dekken on Twitter and buy his book on the music of Final Fantasy VI Listen to the episode of Sam Pancake Presents the Monday Afternoon Movie about the Barbara Eden movie The Stranger Within, in which Sam followed up having Drew and Glen as guests with founding SNL star Laraine Newman, making us look like real chumps Purchase the first issue of Drew and Glen's new comic anthology, Beyond Sunset Go shop at our TeePublic store! Follow: GEE on Facebook • GEE's Facebook Group • GEE on Twitter • GEE on Instagram • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! We even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Ordinary Extraordinary Love" (January 8, 2013) Bears, twinks, otters, wolves, panthers, yetis and bunniculas. The breadth of subcultures that gay life offers is both wide and weird — and a subject rarely approached by mainstream sitcoms. However, Happy Endings brought this to broadcast in the mid-2010s, all centered around the uncategorizable Max. The content warning that wasn't: In the original intro clip, Max references a trans slur that, if we're being responsible, would have gotten a warning. It's a garbage joke. I cut it from our episode, and it could be removed so cleanly that 1) you won't notice it being gone and 2) you have to realize how unnecessary it was in the first place. Should you watch the Happy Endings episode, be forewarned that it does feature this pointless joke. See the framed otter photo that Drew thinks looks like Glen here. Read After Elton's piece on Happy Endings opting out of a same-sex kiss in its first season Read the NY Magazine piece on Happy Endings Purchase the first issue of Drew and Glen's comic anthology, Beyond Sunset. Go shop at our TeePublic store! Follow: GEE on Facebook • GEE's Facebook Group • GEE on Twitter • GEE on Instagram • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! We even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. This is a TableCakes podcast!

"72 Hours" (February 17, 1990) We figured the only proper way to start this season would be to say goodbye to Betty White — and a great way to do that would be to discuss a Golden Girls episode where Rose takes an HIV test. Not only does it showcase a wider range of Betty's acting chops, but it's also a great kickoff to a new sort of episode we'll be covering on GEE in the future: very special episodes about HIV and AIDS. Even if there are no LGBT characters in this episode, the subject matter hit home for the community — and the fact that so many AIDS/HIV episodes revolved around the heterosexual experience of the disease is itself very telling. Goodbye, Betty. You will be missed. Read NPR's piece "What The Golden Girls Taught Us About AIDS" "Why Was HIV/AIDS Never Discussed on Will & Grace?" The episode of Date With the Angels we discuss is "Brown Derby" — worthwhile watching for diehard Betty White completionists The pilot to the Alfred Molina series Ladies Man, with a stacked female cast that included Betty, is also on YouTube Listen to our previous AIDS episode, "Julia Sugarbaker Plans a Gay Funeral" Listen to our previous Golden Girls episodes: Rest in Peace, Phyl Petrillo The Golden Girls Meet a Trans Man Glen Writes a Golden Girls (a.k.a. "Vince Meat") The Golden Girls Had a Gay Live-In Cook Blache's Homo Brother Wants to Get Gay Married Blanche's Brother Is a Homo Dorothy's Friend Is a Lesbian Purchase the first issue of Drew and Glen's comic anthology, Beyond Sunset. Go shop at our TeePublic store! Follow: GEE on Facebook • GEE's Facebook Group • GEE on Twitter • GEE on Instagram • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! We even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"The Bands Break Up" (September 28, 1987) We're not *quite* ready yet to swing into regular production, so we're tossing up an episode of our Patreon-only bonus podcast, The Cartoons That Made Us Gay, onto the main feed. It's the Jem and the Holograms episode that is titled "The Bands Break Up" but would me more accurately titled "Kimber and Stormer Are Gay Lesbians Making Beautiful Queer Music Together." Intentionally gay or not, it is hard to dismiss these girls' relationship as just platonic, to the point that we don't have to work hard at all to find the queer elements — especially in a show that already offers a lot for LGBT viewers. Showtime, Synergy! And if you like this episode, you might also like the newest episode of Cartoons That Made Us Gay, which is all about Sailor Moon. You can listen right now on Patreon by pledging just $1 a month. And we're not charging you all for the next month to account for the lighter content output. Show notes: Watch a featurette on Jem's speaking voice singing the main theme for the anime Project A-ko. Read the L.A. Times story on Barbie's victory over Jem. Read all about Bill Sanders, creator of Jem and (we're guessing) a gay person. Queer readings of kids shows, previously: He-Man with special guest Henry Gilbert Fraggle Rock with special guest Matt Baume Dungeons & Dragons Dinosaurs 80s Cartoons with special guest Ted Biaselli Batman: the Animated Series episode "Harley and Ivy" The logo for The Cartoons That Made Us Gay was designed by Jeff Hinchee. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"A Little Christmas Queer" (December 8, 2005) Lest you be tempted to believe that Christmas miracles aren't real, we finally found an episode of Will & Grace that Drew doesn't hate. This one, from the final season of the show's original broadcast run, focuses on Will and company spending Christmas with his family and the problems posed by the fact that Will's nephew seems so very gay. It's actually a more nuanced look at the difficulties of being gay and leaving your life to spend the holiday with your (presumably straight) family. It doesn't suck! Not even the Grace storyline! Mental Floss has an article detailing Kellogg's Cornflakes and their origin as an effort to get people to masturbate less. And Daily Beast has a piece on William Faulkner's long-term love affair with binge drinking. Listen to the Monday Afternoon Move episode about The UFO Incident with Scott Philbrook. Listen to the Smart Mouth episode titled "Why Are U.S. School Lunches Like This?" Listen to the Singing Mountain episode titled "My Save Point Is a Hot Shower." Buy the first issue of Drew and Glen's new comic anthology, Beyond Sunset. Go shop at our TeePublic store! Follow: GEE on Facebook • GEE's Facebook Group • GEE on Twitter • GEE on Instagram • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! We even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. This is a TableCakes podcast.

Special presentation! The Totally Trans podcast is covering the All in the Family character of Beverly LaSalle in a three part series this week because it marks a pairing of trans representation on a sitcom with the Christmas season. In an effort to promote this in-depth look at All in the Family, we're posting the first part on our feed. Have a listen — and then subscribe to Totally Trans to hear parts two and three as well as everything Ada-Rhodes, Henry and Katie will be discussing in 2022. Subscribe on… Apple Podcasts Stitcher Spotify Google Podcasts Also follow Totally Trans on Twitter support them on Patreon!

"Evie Stevie" (December 16, 1989) Whether you remember it as the show with the talking geodesic dad cube or the one with the girl who could freeze time, Out of This World has been relegated to the further reaches of 80s nostalgia. You might even believe some naysayers that it wasn't a good show; however, it was exactly as good of a show as you could hope for about a half-alien teen girl whose supernatural powers cause wacky, zany hijinx. It's not Norman Lear, but you know what? Neither were ALF, I Dream of Jeannie or Sabrina the Teenage Witch. Watch the episode we're talking about here (PW: garland) And here's the weird clip Drew mentions about the episode with the twins who materialize to sing about bad breath. If you want to see what David Lynch TV looks like minus the macabre, watch this clip of On the Air. Finally, here is the Lincoln Center performance of Twelfth Night starring Helen Hunt. Buy the first issue of Drew and Glen's new comic anthology, Beyond Sunset. Go shop at our TeePublic store! Follow: GEE on Facebook • GEE's Facebook Group • GEE on Twitter • GEE on Instagram • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! We even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. This episode was edited by Meika Grimm. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Ovulation Day" (January 7, 1996) Mad About You was one of NBC's major sitcoms in the 90s, but it hasn't left a legacy the way many of its Must See TV mates have. We talk about why in this episode, which is actually the part one of a two-part crossover with the queer film podcast A Piece of Pie, where we're also discussing Helen Hunt's Oscar-winning turn in 1997's As Good as It Gets. Listen to Drew and Glen guest on A Piece of Pie's discussing of As Good as It Gets here. Subscribe to A Piece of Pie on Apple Podcasts and follow them on Twitter. Read the New York Times' write-up on the history of the show. Read the Vulture piece on how Mad About You defied categorization. Watch Helen Hunt do PCP and then jump through a plate glass window in the after school special Desperate Lives (which is actually not the angel dust movie, which is called Angel Dusted and which is also entertaining). Buy the first issue of Drew and Glen's new comic anthology, Beyond Sunset. Go shop at our TeePublic store! Follow: GEE on Facebook • GEE's Facebook Group • GEE on Twitter • GEE on Instagram • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! We even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. This is a TableCakes podcast.