Gayest Episode Ever

A veteran sitcom writer, Stan Zimmerman is one half of the duo that penned the script for "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the episode of Roseanne in which the main character is kissed by a lesbian. In this interview, Stan talks about the process of writing that episode and riding through the controversy surrounding it, but he also offers behind-the-scenes insight from his time on Golden Girls, the gay-centric Showtime series Brothers, his efforts to get his sitcom project Silver Foxes on a screen near you and the role he played in getting RuPaul the role of Miss Cummings the guidance counselor in The Brady Bunch Movie. Read Drew's interview with Golden Girls writers Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Harley and Ivy" (January 18, 1993) In GEE's first bonus episode, Glen and Drew focus on something that's not a sitcom but is nonetheless pretty damn gay — the Batman: The Animated Series installment that put a lesbianish aura around Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn, which extended to the comics and ultimately made the duo a full-fledged couple years later. Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"The Boys in the Bar" (January 27, 1983) When Sam Malone makes a show of supporting his newly out former teammate, the regulars at Cheers worry that bar will suddenly go queer. It's another case of straight hysteria and straight histrionics, but luckily it's Diane Chambers to the rescue. The first season of Gayest Episode Ever closes out with a remarkable installment of one of Drew and Glen's favorite shows and singing of the praises of Shelley Long, patron saint of suffering creatives everywhere. Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"The Outing" (February 11, 1993) Seinfeld won a GLAAD award for this episode all about how even the most well-meaning straight people would be horrified to be mistaken for gay. It helped popularize "not that there's anything wrong with that" and, to a lesser extent, "single, thin and neat" as 90s-era gay catchphrases and also managed to spin a whole half-hour with minimal presence of actual LGBT characters. Emelie Burnette, copy editor to the stars, joins Glen and Drew to talk about what this episode gets right, as well as Veronica Mars' enduring legacy, seeing Larry David in the men's room, a rapper whose name sounds like Queef Latina, and why Elaine refuses to take off her coat. Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Killing All the Right People" (October 5, 1987) In one of the most devastating sitcom installments ever aired, Sugarbaker & Associates plans the funeral of a young gay man dying of AIDS. This is *VERY* *SAD* episode, and we want you to know that it might choke you up, should you be the type who listens at the gym. That said, there's a lot to learn from this episode of Designing Women, both in what a TV show had to do in 1987 to make straight audiences pay attention to AIDS and how TV has evolved in the past 30 years in the way it features more complex, more nuanced LGBT characters. But yeah, tears. So many tears. Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Homer's Phobia" (February 16, 1997) Hot stuff, coming through! At long last, Homer Simpson asks the difficult question, "Hey, what if Bart is a homo?" This episode has none other than John Waters on hand as the primary non-Smithers Springfield queer, and the result is one of the better gay outings of the entire '90s. Learned person Dr. Bryan Wuest is on hand to help Glen and Drew talk through camp, kitsch and all manner of gayness. Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Rough Housing" (August 24, 1979) You probably remember The Facts of Life, but you may not know that the show's first season introduced a whole slew of characters who wouldn't make it to season two and also that the first-ever episode dealt with Blair's homophobia toward a tomboyish classmate that didn't even turn out to be a lesbian. Playwright and Supernatural writer Steve Yockey joins Drew and Glen to talk whether Blair is a monster, whether Mrs. Garrett crosses a line addressing Blair's monster status and why Jenny O'Hara should have remained on the show. Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"My Brother's Keeper (January 13, 1973) Actor and comedian Sam Pancake joins Glen and Drew to talk about this third-season episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show, in which the last-minute revelation that Phyllis' brother is gay gets the biggest laugh of the show. That said, this is a sweet take on a gay episode that aired when most sitcoms didn't do them. Topics discussed include Bridget Loves Bernie, "Ode to Billy Joe," Murder by Death, the theme song to Phyllis' spinoff and how Gavin MacLeod's character sure seems kinda gay. Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Judging Books by Covers" (February 9, 1971) At the very least, the fact that Richard Nixon hated this episode of All in Family should motivate you to consider why it's actually good. In it, Archie Bunker (Carroll O'Connor) fails to learn a lesson about who's gay and who seems gay. This Norman Lear-penned script has one of the first positive portrayals of an LGBT character ever in an American TV series, and Glen and Drew's discussion covers everything from TaleSpin to Carol Danvers to Luke and Laura from General Hospital. Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.

"Isn't It Romantic?" (November 8, 1986) An award-winning Golden Girls outing does in the mid-1980s what many '90s sitcoms failed to do by introducing a nuanced LGBT character who's not just a prop for the hetero regulars. Lois Nettleton scored an Emmy nom for her turn as Dorothy's friend Jean, who falls for Rose and who is introduced to the audience as being 100 percent comfortable with her sexuality. Everyone else? Not so much. Actor and comedian Tony Rodriguez joins Glen and Drew to talk about why this is one of the best gay episodes of TV ever. Read Drew's interview with Golden Girls writers Support us on Patreon! Follow: GEE on Twitter • Drew on Twitter • Glen on Twitter Listen: iTunes • Spotify • Stitcher • Google Play • Google Podcasts • Himalaya • TuneIn And yes, we do have an official website! And we even have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This is a TableCakes podcast.